Both Sides Now
by Anoron
Summary: Sequel to Key to Marauding. Years have passed since the Marauders were fifteen and mostly innocent. The innocence is all gone now, there are just fragments of hurt and memories left as the survivors scavenge through the wreckage in the shadow of a new war
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing here – those characters and other references from the Harry Potter world are still the property of JK Rowling, and those from Buffy the Vampire Slayer are still the property of Joss Whedon. This prologue contains excerpts from Harry Potter & the Goblet of Fire, which I do not own.

**A.N:** HERE IT IS! The sequel to Key To Marauding, set during Order of the Phoenix & I think fairly easy to figure out what's happening. Just rest assured that all that happened between Dawn's 5th year and Harry's will be revealed in due course - let me know if it's confusing though. I can make no promises regarding update regularity, but due to much pestering (thankyou Alyssa, Amy & Scott) I decided to put this two-part prologue (which has been written since about chapter 20 of Key to Marauding) up.

* * *

**PROLOGUE- the part where the whole damned mess begins**

He'd actually done it. He couldn't quite believe he'd shaken hands with _Snivellus_, but he didn't really have time to process it. Or wash his hand. Voldemort was back, and Sirius knew what that was like. Minutes were precious, minutes meant everything. Minutes may have been one of the million things that could've saved James and Lily.

Dumbledore was organising, giving orders. Sirius forced himself to focus on that, not the past. No matter what, he would do better this time; he wouldn't let Harry down. It took him a second to realise that Dumbledore was up to giving him his assignment, and when he heard it, Sirius wished he hadn't.

"Sirius, I need you to set off at once. You are to alert Remus Lupin, Arabella Figg, Mundungus Fletcher, Dawn Summers- the old crowd. Lie low at Lupin's for a while, I will contact you there."

Sirius' head whipped around to stare fully at Dumbledore as he spoke, and the Headmaster did not miss the flinching of the fugitive at the last name on his list. A name that had no doubt not been uttered in Sirius' presence since his arrest, all those years ago. But what had to be done, had to be done. They needed all the help they could get with the sudden renewal of the war against Voldemort, and old wounds would have to be healed or set aside for the greater good.

"But-" said Harry, staring at the look of intense emotion that had passed across Sirius' face as Dumbledore spoke that last name, Dawn Summers. Harry frowned, deep in thought. Who was Dawn Summers? Why did just the mention of her name have that effect on Sirius? Whoever she was, Harry decided he didn't much care at the present. He wanted Sirius to stay. He did not want to say goodbye again so quickly.

"You'll see me very soon, Harry," Sirius said, turning to him. He still had that funny look on his face, and he was a little pale now. "I promise. But I must do what I can, you understand, don't you?"

"Yeah," said Harry. "Yeah… of course I do."

Sirius grasped his hand briefly, nodded to Dumbledore, transformed again into the big black dog, and ran the length of the room to the door, whose handle he turned with a paw. Like it or not, he was on a mission.

* * *

She lay on the heat-packed sand, letting the sultry late-afternoon air bathe her skin along with the last of the dying sun's rays. She'd been in Rio for almost two years now, it was the longest that she'd stayed in any one place in over a decade, but the roll of parchment in her hand foretold that she would not be staying much longer. She didn't need her powers of divination to tell her that.

She crumpled the roll of parchment in her hand, listening to the crunching sound, like soft potato chips. It had been a year since the last roll of parchment had arrived, and that one had been from her best friend, telling her they'd both based the previous twelve years of their lives on a lie. It was just a feeling, but somehow she knew this one wasn't going to be an easier read.

There were only a few minutes of sunlight left; if she didn't get her butt into gear she'd either have to risk using a _Lumos_ in public or go back to her apartment to be able to make out the words. She took a deep breath, told herself that a grown woman wasn't supposed to be afraid of a little scrap of _parchment_, and unfurled it.

_Dear Dawn,_

_I hope this finds you quickly – I know last year you said it was best if you stayed away, but things have changed. He's back, Kitten. Voldemort's back. Dumbledore's reformed the Order and we need your help. Harry needs you – he needs protection._

_Please come, Dumbledore will be expecting you at the school as soon as you can make it. It's been too long, Dawn. Come home._

_Love, Remus. _

Dawn read it twice through, thinking about the last time she'd spoken with Remus. When she hadn't answered his owl right away (what was she supposed to say?), he'd come to her to explain about the switch in Secret Keepers – how Peter had been the one to betray James and Lily to Voldemort, Sirius had been framed. He'd wanted her to come back to Britain. Remus thought that if she went back, somehow she could make contact with Sirius and everything would be like it was when they were kids and Harry would have both his Godparents and his world would be complete.

But she knew that wasn't how it was going to go. The decision to leave had been made a long time ago, and it had been made for Harry's benefit. Who was she to waltz back into his life whenever she felt like it? Legally she was still one of his guardians, but in her heart she'd denied herself the claim when he was barely two years old – he was better off without her. And Sirius… She couldn't even think about it. Think about him. She blinked the tears away before they could take hold.

When her eyes refocused, they were settled on three words of Remus' short letter. 'Harry needs you'. It was then that she made her decision, she jumped up and stuffed the letter in her pocket and began the short walk back to her apartment to begin packing.

It was time.

**

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**

**A.N:** VERY brief, I know. But hey, it's a prologue, isn't it only meant to set the scene anyway? XX


	2. Flame Trees

**Disclaimer:** Owning nought here. The Harry Potter things are all JK Rowling's and the Buffy stuff is all Joss Whedon's. Flame Trees, lyrics and all, is by Cold Chisel.

**A.N.** I got lucky here – quiet week at work plus boyfriend gone away equals time to write and type. The next update won't be nearly so quick. Thanks for the support all you wonderful returned readers! By the way, still trying to come up with an effective 'flashback' format – let me know if it works or if it needs to be clearer. Thanks. XX

* * *

CHAPTER ONE 

**Flame Trees**

…_I'm just savouring familiar sights,_

_We shared some history, this town and I…_

Dawn's suitcase sent up a cloud of dust as it hit the dirt outside the gates of Hogwarts. With a bang, the huge, purple, double-decker form of the Knight Bus disappeared, leaving her to contemplate the long path up to the castle alone.

It took her a few minutes to talk herself into picking up her luggage and taking those first steps. She didn't know what everybody would say when she just showed up in their lives out of nowhere. Hell, she didn't even know what _she_ would say. 'So, what did I miss?'

The thoughts carried her all the way through the familiar, rolling green grounds and up the stone steps which had seen her first come into this world. When Dawn reached the double doors of the castle, she was almost surprised to find them locked tight. She pushed against them and rattled the handle, but to no avail. She didn't even bother trying _Alohamora_. Her hands went to her hips.

"I told him he needed a doorbell."

She waited a few minutes, but nobody came to answer her knocks and calls. Then it hit her.

"Hagrid!"

Leaving her suitcase on the landing, Dawn headed towards the cabin nestled snugly on the border of the Forbidden Forrest. As she rounded the final corner, a booming bark was all the warning she got before she was leapt upon and licked half to death by an unbelievably large boarhound. She laughed and began petting him enthusiastically.

"Hey, Fang. How you doing, boy?"

"I dare say he's happy to see a familiar face."

Dawn blinked, staring up at the smiling old Wizard in the purple robes, complete with little gold stars as his eyes twinkled down at her. She leapt to her feet, brushing globs of dog slobber away.

"Professor Dumbledore!"

"Dawn Summers, I'm so pleased you're here," Dumbledore smiled, then hit her with a cleaning charm so he could embrace her like a long-lost grandchild.

"The doors were locked, so I came down to see if Hagrid was here," she explained when they parted. "I didn't expect to see you down this way."

"Ah, yes," Dumbledore said in that same serene voice that had guided Dawn through her three years at Hogwarts. "As for the doors being locked, one can never be too careful about who might just try to pop in while your back is turned, and I am down here to feed Fang whilst Hagrid is… away."

"Away," Dawn repeated slowly, as her mind translated the word to 'on assignment for the Order'.

Dumbledore clapped his hands together. "But come, let us talk inside where we can be comfortable. We have so much to catch up on."

They strolled back up to the castle and then through the halls, Dawn marvelling at the sameness of the place. Her eyes watered. She half expected to see James and Sirius hurtling down the next corridor, fifteen years old and laughing madly about their latest prank. Probably involved throwing something gross at Snape. She blinked and hurried to catch up with Dumbledore, who'd thoughtfully gone ahead a few paces. They went into Dumbledore's office and after Dawn had spent a few minutes fawning over his phoenix, Fawkes, they sat down over a cup of tea to talk.

Dumbledore went over the end of the Triwizard tournament in detail, spending almost an hour alone on Voldemort's rebirth, and Harry's battle with him. Once again, there were tears in Dawn's eyes by the time he had finished. Her Godson had gone through so much pain and she hadn't been there to help him through.

"I should've been here," she whispered, shamed.

Dumbledore did not disagree with her, but he looked very tenderly at her. "You did what you thought was best, Dawn, nobody can fault you for that. Harry has had a lot of trials in his life, but he's always been equal – more than equal – to the task. But now is the time he faces more than he's ever had to before, more than he knows, and now is the time he'll need you. And you've come. You're here."

Dawn wiped at her eyes. "I don't know how he'll react to me… he won't even remember me. The last time I spoke to him he was barely two years old. God, I haven't even set eyes on him in two and a half years, not that he ever knew I was there! Has he grown? Do you think he'll hate me?"

Dumbledore knew from experience that there was no point in trying to interrupt, he just waited it out as if he had nothing more to do with his night. "Yes, he's grown Dawn. And no, I don't think he'll hate you," he said when he could get a word in edgeways. "But you may have to work rather hard to gain his trust. Harry has never been one to accept people too easily. He's been hurt a few too many times in his life for that. But you've always loved him with all your heart and in time he'll see that and won't be able to ignore it."

Dawn sighed and nodded. It was probably the best she could hope for. She flicked her hair back and sat up straighter, putting her teacup back on the desk. "Ok, let's get down to business. Where are we at on the Voldemort front?"

Dumbledore's eyes fixed on her with admiration. She'd made an excellent Auror in her day (would probably be a Deputy Head Auror by now if she hadn't turned her back on the Ministry) and he was heartened, almost relieved, to see her so eager to rejoin the fight.

"Do I take this to mean you choose to rejoin the Order of the Phoenix?"

"Albus! Do I even have to answer that? Of course it's yes," she smirked.

"Excellent. Before we 'get down to business' then, where are you staying, Dawn?"

She blinked. Random. Dumbledore. "Uh, nowhere yet. I'm planning on booking a room at the Three Broomsticks. You know how Rosmerta just loves to see me!"

Dumbledore snorted before he could stop himself. It was truly intriguing, the way those two personalities just… clashed. "Perhaps you would prefer to stay at Order Headquarters, then? It will be easier for you, and until the beginning of term in September, Harry will be there."

Dawn blushed slightly as she nodded. She was as impatient as she was terrified to see Harry again. "Thanks."

"You're welcome."

Dumbledore glanced at one of the portraits of old Headmasters and Headmistresses lining a full wall of his office. "Phineas, will you kindly go to Headquarters and inform them that another old member will be rejoining them, if they could be so kind as to prepare a room? Thank you."

Grumbling, the portrait of Phineas slouched out of his frame.

Dawn frowned. "Albus, where exactly is Headquarters?"

His eyes bored into hers. "The Headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix may be found at number twelve, Grimmauld Place."

She froze. Grimmauld Place…

"Sirius…"

"Yes," he said, not ungently. "He inherited the property with the death of his mother and has kindly offered it for our use."

Dawn's eyes had hardened a little. "You should have told me."

"Would it have changed your decision?"

She thought about it. "No," she sighed. "But still, I think I deserved to have known that earlier. Would you have just let me show up there without warning me?"

Dumbledore poured her some more tea. "I'm sorry, Dawn. I don't want to make this even more difficult for you. Would you like to hear of our plans now?"

"Sure."

"You remember the prophecy, of course?"

"The one that sent Voldemort after my brother and his family? How could I forget?" she returned wryly.

"Of course. Well, it seems Voldemort is intent on hearing it in full, so the main objective of the Order thus far has been to guard the Department of Mysteries to prevent his accessing it."

"Have there been any attempts?"

"Not yet," Dumbledore admitted, but he was too shrewd to look pleased about it. "But I expect one any night, now. Voldemort's had Lucius Malfoy and several of his other faithfuls in the Ministry on an almost daily basis. When they're not paying our dear Minister into carrying on with life as if nothing is wrong, I'm sure they're scouting out the Hall of Prophecies."

"Never liked Fudge," Dawn huffed.

"As he's well aware," Dumbledore returned, as if merely commenting on the weather.

Dawn giggled, but dived right back in. "So we're fighting an underground war for now. Is there any field work yet? Is Mad-Eye running it? I'll volunteer – you could pair me with Remus, I bet we're still untouchable-"

"Just a moment, Dawn," her mentor/guidance counsellor/friend called, holding up a halting hand. "I'm sure your confidence in yourself and Remus is not misplaced and I always welcome strong field agents, but you may just be – how do the muggles say it? – jumping the gun."

"But-"

"No," Dumbledore said more firmly. "Let's not be too hasty, Dawn. I know what an exemplary field agent you are, yes, but I want you to settle in first, get to know everyone and get a feel on what's happening. You may just find there are other roles more suited to your tastes."

She eyed him suspiciously. "Like what?"

He grinned, looking incredibly cheeky for a man of his age and stature. "I do not know. They are your tastes."

Dawn rolled her eyes. How very 'Dumbledore'. Then she was stifling a yawn. It had grown pitch black outside, but they had been to involved in their conversation to realise it.

"Goodness, look at the time! I haven't even offered you dinner," Dumbledore said, looking mildly shocked with himself. "Shall I call a House-Elf up?"

Dawn waved the suggestion away. "I'm not hungry. Airline food closely followed by a trip on the Knight Bus will do wonders to decimate a girl's appetite. I'm pretty tired, though.

"Would you like to stay here, at Hogwarts, tonight?" the Headmaster invited at once, but at that moment the portrait of Phineas returned to his frame.

"My great-great-Grandson says there's a guest room on standby," he said in a disinterested voice.

"I should go," Dawn whispered. If she didn't force herself to go all the way tonight, she might chicken out in the morning. "They'll all be there. And they're expecting me now."

He looked as though he'd been expecting that answer. "Of course. The location of Headquarters is a secret protected by the Fidelius charm; remember what I told you once you get to London."

"The Floo system is being watched, isn't it?" Dawn realised when Dumbledore didn't offer her the fireplace.

"It is," he said simply. "I think it wisest that you Apparate to London. Do you think you've been seen by any of our enemies? Is it possible they'll be aware of your return to the country?"

Dawn shook her head. "Doubtful. I took the Knight Bus straight from Heathrow and it was empty except for Stan and Ernie, and I doubt they'd care enough to announce it to anyone. I didn't sense anyone, either."

"Good, good," Dumbledore mused. "Well, shall I walk you to the gates?"

He levitated her suitcase and they went together to the boundaries of the school, where the Apparation wards would expire. They walked in silence, Dawn chewing her lip and contemplating the many reunions impending for her. Remus she knew she could count on for a warm hug and a welcome no matter what, but Harry wouldn't even know who she was. And a part of her couldn't stop fretting over the possibility that Sirius wouldn't want to know her anymore, either. She was startled by a gnarled old hand resting on her shoulder. They'd reached the gates. With a flickering smile, Dawn reached for her suitcase.

Dumbledore smiled gently. "You'll be ok, Dawn."

She just looked at him. "I'll survive," she corrected.

She whirled on the spot and, with a crack, she had Disapparated and was gone.

* * *

There was a light tap at the door. 

"I'll get it, I'm on my way out anyway," Tonks volunteered, tripping over the umbrella stand in her haste to unbolt the heavy front door to the House of Black.

"Sorry," she called sheepishly as the curtains fell away and the portrait of Mrs Black began wailing loudly.

Harry, now standing at the foot of the stairs with Sirius and Remus, fought the urge to cover his ears with his hands in order to salvage his damaged hearing.

"Just get the door, dear," Molly called to the dithering young witch, exasperated.

The door swung open to reveal a pretty woman, about the same age as Sirius and Remus, with enormous blue eyes and long, straight brown hair. She quickly stepped into the chaos so Tonks could slip past her and close the door, and dropped her suitcase by the fallen umbrella stand. Harry sneaked a sideways glance at his father's friends, hoping for some clue as to who this woman was, but found none. Remus was grinning a warm welcome at her, but Sirius was frozen on the spot, his jaw set and his expression unreadable.

"FILTH! BLOOD TRAITORS! SCUM, HALF-BREEDS AND MUDBL-" the senile screechings of the portrait stopped abruptly as Mrs Black's eyes landed on the woman who'd just stepped into her home.

The woman smirked at the portrait. "Miss me?" she quipped in a distinctly American accent. Remus took the opportunity to step up and help Mrs Weasley tug the curtains closed over the gaping portrait. He turned to grin at the new arrival.

"You came," he commented.

"Of course I did. How could I not?"

Remus nodded. "It's good to see you, Dawn."

In response, Dawn placed a friendly kiss on his cheek and wrapped the werewolf up in a swift hug. When she broke free, her gaze landed on Sirius and it seemed to Harry that the entire world had stopped existing. That there was nothing left outside the force behind those two blue gazes locked together in some sort of unreadable conversation. Harry blinked. Dawn…

_

* * *

__"But-" said Harry, staring at the look of intense emotion that had passed across Sirius' face as Dumbledore spoke that last name, Dawn Summers. Harry frowned, deep in thought. Who was Dawn Summers? Why did just the mention of her name have that effect on Sirius?_

* * *

Silence stretched on, the hallway full of spectators who didn't know what was going on (save Remus), scarcely dared to breathe from fear of interrupting the staring contest.

Finally, though his throat was constricted, his voice strangely strangled, Sirius managed a single word.

"Kitten."

"Padfoot."

With that, Dawn wrenched her gaze free of Sirius', and on to Harry. Her breath caught in her throat, and a bittersweet expression flitted across her face as she studied the boy before her. Before Harry could even begin to decipher the look on her face, she was offering a shy smile.

"Hello, Harry. I'm Dawn Summers."

"It's nice to meet you, Miss Summers," Harry responded politely, still wondering at the expression in her eyes. He couldn't mistake it, it was care. Care not for the Boy Who Lived, but care for Harry James Potter. The same care that was in the eyes of Sirius, Remus and the Weasleys when they looked at him.

"Just Dawn, please," she urged softly.

"Ok, Dawn."

"This is your Godmother, Harry," Sirius told him quietly, still staring down at the slightly shorter woman through shuttered eyes.

Harry froze. Godmother. His green eyes hardened and became almost acidic with anger as the implications of Sirius' statement sank in. "If I had a Godmother, she'd have been around for oh, say, my entire life," he pointed out coldly. "So, no, this woman is not my Godmother. I don't have one."

"Two years ago, you didn't think you had a Godfather either, Harry," Remus pointed out gently.

"Sirius had a good reason for not being around. What's your excuse?" Harry snapped at Dawn.

Dawn's eyes were riddled with pain as she blinked rapidly against the tears welling in them. "I'm sorry, Harry. I- I didn't mean to upset you. Really, I didn't- maybe I shouldn't have come," she stammered, and for a moment Sirius found himself looking not at the capable, independent woman before him, but at a shadow of the shy, uncertain girl he'd met all those years ago.

"Maybe you should've come sooner," he suggested, not unkindly.

Bad move. The second the words were out of his mouth, Sirius regretted them. He could sense his mistake from the way Dawn's eyes dried and hardened, turning a pained, angry stare onto him. Harry watched, part of his anger giving way to curiosity as his Godfather seemed to shrink under a simple look from this woman.

"You left a hell of a lot of mess behind you, Sirius Black," she informed him in an overly calm voice. "Don't presume that just because I couldn't clean it up by myself I didn't try."

More strained silence, though this time both Sirius and Dawn refused to meet the other's stare, each looking pointedly at the dusty floor. Molly finally intervened, offering Dawn her motherly smile and a dimpled hand to shake.

"Molly Weasley, dear. Why don't you come on down to the kitchen and I'll fix you up a late supper. You must be hungry."

Dawn looked ready to decline the offer, but Remus stepped in with a slightly strained smile. "Great idea, Molly. Why don't you take Dawnie on down to the kitchen and I'll take care of her bag, shall I? Harry? Sirius? Maybe you could lend Molly a hand," the werewolf suggested pointedly before seizing Dawn's suitcase and disappearing upstairs.

Dawn had no choice but to follow the others through the tomb-like house to the kitchens. "I forgot how medieval it all was," she murmured, taking in the heavy wood and stone décor.

"You've been here before?" Harry asked, despite himself. Mad as he was that this person had the audacity to abandon him all those years ago, then show up all smiles and acting like nothing had happened, he couldn't quite forget the genuine affection in her eyes when she looked at him.

Dawn nodded. "Just once. When we were sixteen, your Dad and I came to help Sirius get some of his stuff after he left. I, uh, ended up in a screaming bitch-fight with Mrs Black," she admitted sheepishly.

Sirius found himself snickering. "In the end it took both me and James to haul her off my dear old Mum," he told Harry, while Dawn blushed and slid into a seat at the table.

"She made me angry," she mumbled defensively, at which Sirius snorted. Harry was fighting to keep the smile from his face as Sirius gently pushed him into the seat beside Dawn and went to help Molly with the supper.

Soon enough, the table was laid out with a pot of steaming tea and some warm muffins. "This looks great, Molly. Thanks," Dawn smiled.

Molly pushed a loaded plate towards the younger woman. "Eat up, eat up dear," she urged. "You too, Harry. You barely ate a thing at dinner, don't think I haven't noticed," she scolded the boy lightly before turning her attention back to the tea and to Dawn.

"So, Dawn, what do you do?" Molly asked, pouring four cups of tea.

It seemed to Harry that Dawn's smile as she replied was a hybrid of a cheeky grin and an evil grin. "I'm a rogue demon hunter," she replied flippantly.

"Oh. Isn't that a bit dangerous, though?" Molly frowned disapprovingly.

"Yeah, it's dangerous. But I guess you could say it's in my blood. And I'm still here, so I must be doing something right. Been going for fourteen years now," Dawn's eyes flickered significantly to Sirius with the last of her statement.

"Wicked," Harry breathed.

Dawn gave him a stern look over the top of her mug. "Your mother would find a way back to life just so she could kill me if I in any way, shape or form encouraged you to consider running around after demons. But thanks, it is pretty wicked," she grinned.

Harry tore off a large chunk of muffin and shoved it into his mouth to avoid making a response. He wasn't sure whether he wanted to chuckle at the woman or throw something at her for thinking she'd have any say in his future career choices whatsoever.

* * *

Dawn shifted uncomfortably, contemplating the whole new meaning the term 'deafening silence' had just taken on for her. She suddenly regretted not forcing the others to stay when Molly had herded Harry and Remus out of the kitchen and off to get some rest. She glanced at the clock. Was it really only three minutes that she and Sirius had been sitting here alone together? 

Funny, when every heartbeat to Dawn was feeling more like three lifetimes. Sirius, too, was fidgeting in his seat, his hands clenched so tightly around his mug that Dawn was counting the never-ending seconds until it cracked. She sighed heavily under the weight of fourteen long years.

"What happened, Sirius?" she finally asked.

"You know what happened, Dawn. You heard the stories, I know Remus told you," came the weary reply, to which Dawn shook her head.

"No. I want to hear it from you for once. I want to know why."

"Why what?"

"Why everything. Why you had to go after Wormtail like that, why you never told Dumbledore or anyone about changing Secret Keepers, why you didn't tell me what was going on-"

"You told me not to!" Sirius interrupted, his voice rising dangerously. "You said you didn't want to know where Lily and James had gone until we were safely in hiding ourselves! As usual, little Dawnie got all scared and decided she didn't trust herself. You thought you had it all worked out perfectly so everyone was safe and nothing was your responsibility. Well, it backfired Dawn- you were so worried about protecting yourself that you forgot about me!" Sirius glared down at her, anger and heartbreak fuelling the words he was sure he didn't even really believe. He had no memory of getting to his feet, but there he was, looming dangerously over the woman he'd loved since he was a boy, arms braced against the arms of her chair, his own toppled over in the background.

Tears trickled down Dawn's cheeks, though when they'd started she'd never know. Her breath came in ragged gasps, and her eyes showed the faintest trace of fear for the first time since she could remember. Time was, Sirius' passion would light her soul on fire right along with his, but now all she could fathom was the cold, ashen feeling of being burned from the inside out

"But you just left," she whispered. "You left me alone and you never came back. You promised me you'd come back, but you didn't," her voice was shaking, lonely, childlike. "And don't ever say I forgot about you, Sirius Black. I happen to know for a fact it's impossible."

Sirius shoved himself away from Dawn, whirling to pace through his frustrations. "I didn't know what to do, all right?" he demanded savagely. "I lost it when I saw James- his body- and I knew it was all my fault! I was the only one who knew about Wormtail, so I had to go after him alone."

"No you didn't," Dawn cried out bitterly, stopping Sirius mid-stride in his pacing to stare at her. "You didn't have to be alone, I thought you knew well enough that you could come to me. I would have stood by you, trusted you until the end of the world, you know that. I guess you just didn't trust me-"

The sound of a porcelain mug shattering against a stone wall cut her off. She leapt to her feet in surprise and alarm. "Dammit, Dawn!" Sirius practically screamed at her. "Don't give me that bullshit, you know damned well it isn't true. I lost a brother, I lost _everything_ that night-"

In a flash, Dawn was on Sirius, one strong hand on his chest shoving him firmly back against the wall. Sirius, too shocked by her sudden, violent movements to react, gaped at her.

"No," Dawn hissed. "I lost everything that night. You lost your best friend, yes, and then you decided to abandon everyone else in the world who loved you. There is a very big difference between loss and abandonment, and it was all your choice. And don't ever forget- I lost the same brother you did." Dawn turned to storm out, conveniently forgetting she had no idea which room Remus had taken her things to in the process.

His shock immediately subsided, Sirius snatched Dawn's arm back and swung her around forcefully. His fingers tightened under her chin, forcing her to hold his almost-wild gaze. Dawn trembled under the painful grip, but cursed herself inwardly for the fact that the trembling caused by Sirius' touch was from neither fear nor pain. The one touch for her entire life she knew would revert her back to a fifteen year old schoolgirl every time she felt it. She closed her eyes, trying in vain to block him out.

"Listen to me, little girl," Sirius began, his voice a low growl that rumbled somewhere in Dawn's stomach. She opened her eyes, and all of a sudden they looked so much older then they should have.

"I don't know what you're seeing right now," she said softly. "But that 'little girl' is long gone. She died that day on the street when she watched you laughing as they dragged you away. Funny though, anything of her left in here still belongs to you… always has."

"I don't believe you, Dawn," Sirius growled, his voice all of a sudden much thicker than normal. One hand was still squeezing her chin, leaving angry red fingermarks along her jaw. The other was bruising her arm with its vice-like grip.

"You're hurting me," Dawn snarled, anger flashing through her. Sirius' only response was to tighten his grip and push her back against the wall he'd found his back to only moments ago.

Cold resolve settled on Dawn's face and before Sirius could even register it, he found himself shoved back, sprawling on the hard kitchen floor. Maybe he had been just a little off about the 'little girl' part. Both of them were panting as if they'd run a marathon.

Dawn's hand inched into her shirt. A moment later, her hand reappeared, cradling a chain with two rings attached. The first was a gold, Celtic pattern ring embedded with diamonds. An engagement ring, obviously old but well cared for. The second was the silver claddagh ring Sirius had given her for Christmas long ago, when they were still only fifteen years old.

Struggling through an unseen force that seemed to be pushing him down again, Sirius slowly climbed to his feet, never once taking his eyes off the rings he knew all-too well. Not too easy to forget, given the twin of one of them was currently on his own hand. It was the one thing he had made damned sure he held onto when they tossed him into Azkaban to rot. "You kept them?" His voice had softened with sadness and bittersweet memories.

"I had to hold onto something, didn't I? I had to believe that one day you might come back. Big spankin' 'property of' sticker, right here," she said wryly. "You may have left me one night, but I never left you."

Was she crying again? Dawn couldn't be sure, she was having so much trouble locating reality at the moment, but she decided that if she was crying, it didn't really matter because so was he. Only a couple of tears slipping out the corner of one eye, but they were enough for Dawn. The pair deflated, melding together at the forehead, intense blue gazes locked and once again unbreakable. Sirius' hand slid up to rest over Dawn's heart, and it felt to Dawn like coming home at last as she felt its rhythmic beating against his hand.

"I never left you either, my Kitten," he whispered, his warm breath teasing her face. Dawn leaned in, just a fraction of an inch, her lips dangerously close to grazing his.

A loud knock at the kitchen door startled them both apart. They turned just in time to see Remus tentatively pushing the door open to peer through. "Is everything all right in here? I heard shouting," he frowned at them.

"Yeah," Dawn said with a tremulous smile. "Yeah, everything's fine, Rem. Um, how about showing me to my room?"

* * *

The wallpaper was peeling, the carpet was fraying and there was an overwhelming sense of mustiness about Dawn's room, but it was clean and big and she had her own bathroom. She'd spent an hour in that bathroom, getting ready for breakfast, changing her outfit a dozen times and generally just putting off the inevitable. 

A part of her wasn't sure who she was more afraid of; Harry or Sirius. She hardly expected her Godson to have become any less glacial towards her overnight, but she had no clue as to what Sirius was thinking. Their little kitchen scene had played over and over in her head all night so that she'd got only a couple of hours' sleep, and still she was no closer to understanding any of it.

He made her feel like she was fifteen again, nervous and afraid and dying to know if he liked her, or even if she really liked him. She used to be so good at reading Sirius, but if they were fighting one minute – and they'd never, ever gotten physical like that before – and almost kissing the next, what was she supposed to think? She hadn't even meant it, it just seemed like the natural thing to do with him so near. Would they really have kissed? Or would he have pulled away? Should she have?

Dawn groaned and threw herself face down on the bed. She would just hide in her until all this went away – a century, tops, or until the next apocalypse. She could use a good, distracting apocalypse right now. There was a knock at the door and she didn't even bother to lift her head to see who came in.

"Let's move, Dawnie," Remus' voice said cheerily, and she felt his hand pat the back of her leg. "Molly's got enough breakfast downstairs to feed an army."

A muffled, "I have jet lag," fought its way back to Remus' ears through the pillow Dawn's face was smushed into.

"Oh, really? That's funny, I thought you were just hiding up here because you're afraid of a fifteen year old boy and a very confused mutt."

Dawn rolled over. "There are times when I truly hate you for knowing me so well. This would be one of them."

Remus only smiled and hauled her to her feet. "They're not going to learn to get on with you if you're not around to get on with. Now move it, Kitten, I'm hungry."

She giggled. "Sir, yes sir."

They trudged down in the direction of the kitchen, reminiscing of the old days in the Order.

"You remember when we were all stuck on guard duty outside the tower of London, the week Mad-Eye thought there was going to be a ritual sacrifice there?" Dawn laughed.

"How could I forget?" Remus groaned. "Peter and I leave you lot alone for fifteen minutes to get some coffee, and we comeback to find you brawling with the muggle police like common thugs!"

"Hey, they started it," Dawn defended as they hit the final set of cold stone steps. "Some idiot had called them saying there was a bunch of rebels loitering around the tower, it's not our fault they wouldn't believe we were just waiting for our friend to join us… While we were all wearing black hoodies and none of us were carrying I.D…"

Remus rolled his eyes. "And how did that first cop end up with the broken nose again?"

"He tried to cuff James and Lily belted him one," Dawn shrugged. "You know how possessive she got when anyone else tried to tell James off."

Laughing, the two friends stepped into the kitchen. Dawn clammed up at once. There were far too many sets of eyes fixed on her to be comfortable, although several of them seemed to belong to redheads.

"Full house," she muttered.

Harry's eyes skidded over her and went back to his bacon and eggs very quickly, but Sirius stared at her with his shuttered, half-dead eyes.

"Morning," he grunted.

"Good morning."

"Room alright?"

Dawn wanted to scream – that's all he had to say? He was asking about her room? He sounded completely disinterested, like he didn't care one way or the other, but she knew him well enough to know when he was wearing his poker face. She made sure her own mask was firmly in place before she spoke again.

"The room is fine, thanks."

Molly took up the final platter of food to come off the stove and rushed over, her floral apron swishing about her plump legs. She set it on the table and beamed at Dawn.

"Good morning, dear, sit down and have some breakfast and meet everyone," she urged, pushing Dawn into a seat next to a girl with frizzy brown hair. "This is most of mine and Arthur's brood, except for Harry, of course, and Hermione here. Though most of the time I certainly feel as if they're two of my own!"

Molly laughed brightly and Dawn managed a smile that didn't look too sickly before the proud mother launched into an introduction of her children. "This is my eldest, Bill, he started at Hogwarts just a year after your class graduated, you know. And Fred and George, my twins, and Ginny, she's my youngest. And Ron here is in the same class as Harry and Hermione."

Dawn smiled around the table, making a mental note not to call the twins by their given names if she could help it because there was no way she was ever going to be able to tell them apart.

"Kids, this is Dawn Summers."

"My Godmother, apparently," Harry added, the mocking tone of his voice drawing complete silence around the table.

Harry's green eyes were glaring right into Dawn's, but she held her ground. For a moment she had been caught up in the shade of Harry's eyes and been reminded so forcibly of his mother that it was like she was back at Hogwarts with Lily having one of their famous arguments about the only thing they ever argued about – James. Dawn knew that her face was still unreadable, a fact that had to work in her favour. If Harry was even half as stubborn as his mother, she had to put up a fight right at the start or he'd never give her an inch. She raised her eyebrow ever so slightly.

"Yes, your Godmother."

Harry blinked. What had just happened? A slight scowl set around his lips. She was giving him that look, like he was expected to listen to whatever she had to say like a good boy. Well, Harry was sick of being a good boy; it had gotten him nowhere. It had gotten him attacked by Dementors and possibly kicked out of the one place in the world he could stand to be and ignored by Dumbledore and he was listening as hard as he could but nobody was bothering to give him any answers. And Dawn still hadn't looked away.

Harry redirected his glare to his bacon and tore at it with his utensils. Feeling slightly more in control, Dawn finally looked away. The group all shared confused, semi-embarrassed looks and, with obvious effort, returned to their breakfast as if there had been no awkward interruption. Molly was piling food onto everyone's plate with abandon.

"And you, Dawn? What will you have?" she asked after Hermione finally caved in and accepted another sausage.

Dawn looked at the platter and almost grimaced. She'd never been a fan of big, greasy English breakfasts. She took a piece of toast from the pile and immediately Molly opened her mouth to protest.

"I'm not really hungry," Dawn jumped in first. "I flew in from Rio yesterday so my system's still a bit out of whack. Is there coffee?"

"Here," Sirius said, thrusting a mug at her. Dawn took a sip. He remembered how she had it.

There was not a lot of sound beyond the clatter and scrape of utensils and quiet conversation, Remus had fallen into conversation with Bill and Molly was busy trying to force-feed Harry, and nobody seemed too interested in Dawn. Except for the girl sitting next to her. Dawn finished her toast and drank her coffee, all the while aware that Hermione was watching her every move and trying not to appear too obvious about it. Dawn waited to see if she would speak up, but soon enough she had emptied her mug and still Hermione remained silent. In the end, Dawn turned to face her and the younger brunette blushed at having been caught.

The older woman smiled. "Just ask, Hermione."

Hermione frowned. "How did you know I wanted to ask something?"

Dawn shrugged. "The only reason people stare at someone like that is if they either want to take a picture, or ask a question. And I don't see any cameras. Which leaves questions, so fire away."

"Are you serious?" Hermione gaped. "Just like that I get to ask you anything I want?"

"No, I'm not Sirius, he is," Dawn grinned, jerking her head in Sirius' direction. She was actually kind of enjoying this. It was obvious that not many adults offered to satisfy this girl's curiosity so openly, but Dawn, from her own teenage experiences, had vowed never to keep people unnecessarily in the dark. It wasn't exactly easy to forget that at fourteen she had been kept from a truth that she had slit her wrist over when she found out the wrong way. She noticed Hermione still staring in disbelief and hurried on.

"I'm not kidding. Go ahead, ask me anything, and if I can give you an answer, I will."

"All right then," Hermione said, refocusing herself. "Well, I was just wondering – if you're Harry's Godmother, does that mean you and Sirius were, um, together?"

Dawn blinked. So THAT was why adults never liked kids asking questions. "Yeah," she said, a little guarded.

But Hermione had already been given licence to ask anything and that was all the encouragement she needed. Neither of them noticed that their conversation was attracting more and more attention around the table.

"Oh. So why isn't your last name Black, then?" Hermione pressed on. "I mean, I was just curious, did you go back to Summers after… Or was it always that?"

Dawn couldn't help but laugh through her embarrassment. The girl had an eye for detail as sharp as Willow's. Either that, or she was as nosy as Petunia Dursley, but she seemed too human to be anything like Petunia.

"I was never a Black, we never got around to that whole 'getting married' thing. So I've always just been a Summers."

Then she thought about it for a moment. "Well, I think on some Ministry forms I'm actually down as Summers-Potter, but that's really just a technicality."

"Potter?"

Harry's voice drew Dawn's attention to her audience. The Weasleys, Harry and Remus were openly watching her, while Sirius paid much more attention that was necessary to his sausages. Dawn, aware of the hardness in Harry's voice, and Sirius' discomfort at the trip down memory lane, kept her voice light and casual.

"Yeah. Like I said, it was more of a technicality. James' parents became my foster parents, and to help push through the guardianship paperwork, Dad had to use the Potter name on some of them."

"Why were they your foster parents?" Ron blurted, curious.

Dawn shrugged. "My mother died in America when I was fourteen, when I came to Hogwarts James and Sirius and Remus and Peter were my best friends, and the Potters all had such huge hearts that before I knew it Mom Potter was owling me paint samples so she could have my room decorated by summer."

"But if you're American, how did you even come to be at Hogwarts?" Hermione broke in again. "I read in 'Hogwarts, a History' that only British students were accepted."

Dawn shot a quick glance at Remus, who had a slight twinkle in his eye. Harry was having a hard enough time as it was adjusting to Dawn being his Godmother, perhaps it was just a little too soon to drop into the conversation that she was from a whole other dimension. She smiled and shrugged Hermione's question off.

"I guess they made an exception. You know Dumbledore. But come on, let's not sit around here all day, there's got to be something to do in this joint."

"She's going to be sorry she said that." Ginny muttered to Fred and George, but made sure her mother was well out of earshot.

Ginny was right; Dawn was sorry she spoke. Housework was nothing new to her (Sirius was famous for being mysteriously put on duty for the Order whenever their apartment needed cleaning), but what they were doing to the House of Black went so far beyond regular housework that it wasn't funny.

After breakfast, they headed up to the attic to start the decontamination process. Hermione, who seemed determined not to be rude even if Harry insisted on glaring at Dawn every couple of steps, kept firing off questions all the way upstairs. Dawn was beginning to understand how Spike must have felt whenever he saw Lily coming in the few short weeks the Scoobies spent at Hogwarts. Hermione was mentally exhausting Dawn already.

Finally Ron butted in and told Hermione to lay off, provoking an argument between the two of James and Lily proportions and giving Dawn a few moments of peace with her thoughts. Remus had disappeared somewhere along the way, muttering something about important reading, and the others, still a little weary or flat out unhappy with her presence, gave her a wide berth.

The attic stank from misuse – musty, and like old cheese. Dawn, Sirius and Molly led the way with a round of Air Freshening Charms and the twins began poking around an old shelf full of discarded Wizard knick-knacks.

Out of the corner of her eye, Dawn thought she saw Fred (or was if George?) slip something into his pocket while his mother was safely occupied, trying to unlock the shutters on the low skylight to let some natural light in.

"You'll need dragon hide gloves to handle the powder inside until you decontaminate it. Detox Charm should do it," Sirius muttered, on his way to check out what looked to be a pile of rags, but was suspiciously quivering. Sirius prodded the mass with his foot. It squeaked. He readied his wand.

"Ok, stand back everyone," he warned.

Everyone obeyed. Dawn, positioning herself protectively half way between Harry and Sirius, raised her wand, too.

"Now," Sirius hissed, and with his free hand he whipped the rags away.

Neither he nor Dawn had been expecting what came out. Their jaws dropped, they completely forgot to flick their wands as two Cornish pixies flew into the air and began striking like little blue thunderbolts. One zipped over to Fred and George's shelf and began knocking random objects off, forcing the Weasley boys into a mad scramble to catch them all. When Ron made a spectacular dive to the ground to save a crystal ball at the last gasp, Dawn's mind flashed back to James, and Divination, and the semi-regular sound of shattering crystal.

The other pixie was dancing around above their heads, dodging their swiping hands and tugging on Ginny's braids. While it was distracted, hovering over Hermione's head as if it was about to dive-bomb her, Sirius took careful aim.

"_Immobulus!"_

It floated there like a helium balloon without the string. The other pixie spun around at the sound of the spell, but Dawn already had it in her sights and a quick flash of her wand later, calm was restored for the next few minutes.

"Blimey, Sirius," George called. "You've got some off pets here, mate."

Molly conjured a cage and Ginny and Harry each pushed one of the immobilised pixies in before they could become mobilised again. Molly snapped the cage shut.

"I'll get Bill to get rid of them when he gets home from work," she offered.

"Right you are," Sirius replied.

Dawn's mental eyebrow arched. That was Sirius' 'I don't like you very much right now but until I get another chance to argue with you I have to be polite voice'. Remus had mentioned that there was some tension between Molly and Sirius over Harry's welfare on their walk to her room last night, and clearly whatever was said had cut Sirius deeply. Not that she'd be able to talk to him about it – all she'd been treated to this morning was Sirius' Brick Wall impersonation.

"Right, where do we start?" Harry asked Sirius, clapping his hands together and rubbing them. His back was very obviously turned to Dawn.

"Hmm," Sirius muttered. "Probably just give the walls and floor a good scrubbing. If we move everything into that alcove at the back we should be able to do the bulk of it. The more dangerous stuff of my father's has always been kept up here, and I don't really want to be letting you lot loose in it."

Harry, Ron, Ginny and Hermione waited out of the way while the rest used Levitation Charms to stack all the furniture in the alcove, some leaving heavy dust and mildew outlines on the wooden floor. Molly conjured a series of buckets of hot, soapy water and some scrubbing brushes and the youngest four were set to work on the floor. The others each took a wall, while Sirius concentrated on the roof, and the scouring of the attic began. Even though the adults were using wands, the going was slow all around. The build-up of grime was so thick that Cleaning Charms would only work on small patches at a time, and underneath that, the walls themselves were in need of some serious repairs. Plaster had cracked and stones had crumbled, and Sirius could spy a fair few wooden beams in the roof that were rotting. They were still going strong when Molly left to make sandwiches, and when she returned with laden trays and jugs of pumpkin juice, they had a picnic on the considerable clean patch the kids had created on the floor.

Just as they were finishing up the last of the sandwiches, the sound of a body stumbling up the stairs reached their ears, and moments later a man who looked like he'd spent the night in a downtown dumpster graced them with his presence. Molly rather viciously waved her wand to vanish the empty dishes.

"Mundungus."

"Hey, Dung," Sirius and the twins greeted him more easily.

"Remus said you lot'd be up 'ere. Cor," his bleary eyes set on Dawn, still sitting cross-legged on the floor chatting to the girls. "Ain't seen ya for a good long while, Summers. Where ya bin?"

"Hi, Mundungus. I've been in Rio."

"Yeah. Yeah," his eyes travelled more slowly over her. "It's done ya good."

Sirius had to forcefully remind himself that he had neither the right nor the inclination to punch Mundungus square in the mouth.

"I see you haven't changed a bit," she responded crisply.

It was true – he still looked like a stoned boarhound. A sleazy one, apparently. They all got back to work, the kids had nearly finished the floor and Molly bullied Mundungus into helping so that they were done before the others could finish all the replastering that needed to be done. With nothing better to do, they began to idly dust the wardrobes at the forefront of the stash in the alcove.

Ron was working on the one at the far end when he spotted the door ajar.

"Look here, this one's come open."

He pushed it all the way.

"Oh, just some manky old robes," he said, pulling them out to show the others. "I was expecting a skeleton, or a ghoul or something wicked."

At that moment, the robes sprang to life as if there was an invisible body in them. The girls screamed. Ron shouted, but the robes lunged at his throat, choking him.

"Ron!" Harry moved to help, but Mundungus was surprisingly quicker.

He tore the robes away from Ron's throat, swearing loudly as he grappled with the fighting garment. The others swooped in; Sirius helped Mundungus wrestle them back into the wardrobe and Dawn was ready to slam the door shut the moment they let go.

The robes lurched at the doors and nearly burst out – Sirius threw his body weight against it, feeling the thumping through the heavy wood doors. Dawn readied her wand.

Her eyes locked with Sirius' in a moment of silent understanding – the imperceptible communication that had been part of the reason they were such a successful team. Or, part of the reason they used to be… Sirius nodded, and when Dawn inclined her head to the side he dived.

_"Colloportus!_"

The doors fused together, creating a seal.

"Bloody hell," Ron gasped.

"Oh, Ronnie," Molly was gushing, attacking her youngest boy with ferocious kisses and hugs.

"Mum, get off," Ron growled, humiliated, but he couldn't fight his way free of his mother's concerned arms.

"Oh, my poor little Ronnie" – Ginny and the twins bit back snickers – "thank Merlin you're all right!"

Finally Ron managed to escape and Molly turned her attention to Mundungus, smiling at him for the first time since they'd met.

"Thank you so much Mundungus. You saved his life! Oh, won't you stay for dinner?"

Mundungus looked as if, had he known helping Ron would cause such a fuss, he would never have bothered. "Um, yeah. Alright."

Dawn and Sirius had both gone quiet. It had thrown them both, to have so effortlessly fallen back into their old ways when they weren't even speaking to each other. To have connected. Dawn grimaced. They were connecting over a fourteen year abyss, and few things terrified her more than having to fall headlong into it. She couldn't look at him.

He couldn't look at her. Couldn't just go back to the way things were, as if everything since Godric's Hollow hadn't happened. Because he couldn't forget what happened. Not the pile of rubble he found instead of a house at Godric's Hollow, not the crack in James' glasses or the debris all through Lily's hair, or Harry's tears when Sirius handed him over to Hagrid. Not Azkaban. That had all happened to him, and he couldn't just forget it.

_

* * *

__"What are you thinking about?" Dawn murmured._

_Sirius kissed the soft strands of brown hair on the head resting against his shoulder. He sighed, glancing around their snug little flat that Dawn always called an apartment. She'd said it was an American thing; 'flat' sounded as funny to her as 'apartment' did to him. "'Bout James. And Lils and Harry too of course, but… My best friend's life depends on the choices I've made this past week, baby. This is bigger than anything I've ever done before, what if I've made a mistake?"_

_"Don't," Dawn shifted about until she was facing him. Her legs swung over his lap and her arm hooked around his neck for leverage as he adjusted his arm around her. "It's ok to be scared, but James chose you for a reason. He trusts you with his life and his family's because he knows you're the person he can trust more than anyone. You're doing the right thing."_

_Sirius looked away. He hadn't told her about the switch, about Peter being the real Secret Keeper for James and Lily. They'd decided that until they went into hiding themselves, the less she knew, the better. Besides that, neither himself nor James had been game to mention to the woman that they suspected her best friend was a traitor and they were taking extra precautions against Remus just as much as Voldemort. Dawn snuggled deeper into him and closed her eyes. When it was just the two of them, locked safe in their own little haven, sometimes the rest of the world didn't have to exist for a while. The war still raged around them, but it didn't matter for just a moment. Nothing could touch them here._

_A sharp pain took a hold of her, Dawn cried out as a vision hit her out of the blue._

_**"Lily, take Harry and go! It's him! Go! Run! I'll hold him off-" **_

_With a scream and the sound of high-pitched laughter that made her blood run cold echoing in her ears, Dawn regained her senses as abruptly as she'd lost them. She was on the floor, Sirius crouched precariously over her as if she'd pulled them both from the couch when her body convulsed. As soon as her blue eyes had cleared, Sirius pulled both himself and Dawn up again._

_"Oh God," Dawn choked. "James… Voldemort, he's going to find them! I heard James yelling, and Harry was crying in the background. Oh God!"_

_Sirius seized her arms, his pounding heart beat strangely muffled in his ears. "When? Dawn, how much time do we have?"_

_She was crying, shaking her head. "I don't know… not enough, it felt so clear, so real."_

_Sirius felt the world rapidly dropping away from him like his stomach that had thudded to the floor in his feet. He released Dawn's arms. If something had gone wrong, if Peter had been found… it was his fault. It was up to Sirius to stop the worst from happening. He took a step back, putting some distance between himself and the woman he loved. What would she say now, if she understood that his choices may very well have just been the death sentence for not three, but four people she loved with that all-consuming devotion of hers? How would those blue eyes look at him then?_

_"I've… I've got to go."_

_And then he was running from the room, the flat._

_"Sirius!" Dawn cried after him, standing forlornly at the door like a war-widow in training. "What's going on? Where-?"_

_"Stay here!" he called as one leg swung up over his motorbike. He'd sacrificed enough people tonight, he wasn't about to let her get hurt because of his failure to protect his family as well. "I've got to make sure, but you stay! If Voldemort… just please stay?" he begged._

_Dawn stared. He'd asked her to stay away from danger before… and been studiously ignored. He was her Auror partner, her everything partner, whatever danger he walked into, she was by his side. But he'd never begged her before, he'd never panicked. Confused, scared, defeated, she nodded._

_"I'll be back as soon as I make sure it's ok."_

_"You promise?" she asked, lonely and childlike as she fiddled with her claddagh ring._

_"I swear to you on Marauders' Honour, Dawn Summers. I promise, I'll come back," he swore, touching a finger to his own ring. "Lock the doors."_

_With a kick, the engine was grumbling and then peeling down the street. It lifted into the air, Dawn watched the little red taillight til it faded from sight, hugging herself and crying a little. After a few minutes, she realised she was still standing right out in the open, her wand left on the dresser and not even on her. She went back inside and locked the apartment up._

_Sirius touched down at Peter's place, he was off the bike almost before it had rolled to a stop. "Peter? Wormtail?" he roared at the darkened house. He bounded up to the front door, banging mercilessly on the shabby wood. When no-one answered, he tried the handle. Locked tight._

_"Wormtail?" he hollered again, although by now he knew deep down the place was empty. Aside from their extensive Auror training, Dawn had imparted a number of nifty little muggle tricks she'd picked up from watching her sister in action in her younger days. Sirius was grateful for the resource as he lifted his boot and planted it into the door, hitting just the right weak spot. The wood buckled around the lock, he shouldered into the black little house and started a panicked search._

_The rooms were all empty, the doors and windows locked and in tact… aside from the front door he'd just charged down. Peter had gone, but he'd gone without a struggle. Almost as if he'd just gone out to meet some friends. To meet some friends that were Sirius' worst enemies. His heart seemed to stop beating._

_"No…"_

_James. There wasn't time to fix the mistake he'd made. The entire trip to Godric's Hollow was a blur of tears in his eyes and bile in his throat. And when he got there, it was all gone. The tears, the bile, the house. Everything. The bike skidded, tyres screaming as the asphalt abused them before finally it stopped. The engine roared on in the background, but Sirius couldn't hear it. He couldn't hear, think, or feel. But he could see the wreckage of his best friend's home, wreckage he'd created with his choices._

_"James! Lily!" he jogged forwards hopelessly, stopping where the front door used to be._

_Slowly, almost gingerly, he began to pick his way through the piles of broken brick and wood. He was wading mid-thigh in the ruins of Godric's Hollow before he came across it; something soft amongst all the coarseness. Something white and as immobile as its surroundings. A hand. With futile desperation, Sirius shoved the debris away, trying to free someone he'd been too late to save._

_He dropped to his knees beside the body, jaw set, eyes empty, glasses askew. Something in Sirius' mind snapped. What little colour had risen in his cheeks from the open air of the ride over died away, his body shook but his hands were coldly steady as he squeezed James' lifeless hand. He arranged James, no, the body he thought sickly, into a restful pose with his arms folded over his breast, he closed his eyes and adjusted his glasses. Sirius looked closely, committing every detail of James to memory for the last time. He wished he'd done the same with Dawn, he'd likely never see her again either. There was a small scratch on the lens of James' glasses._

_"Occulus Reparo." He didn't even really know why he'd fixed it. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry," he whispered brokenly._

_A pile of the rubble shifted suddenly, Sirius couldn't even remember that he should have his wand on the thing moving through the mess. It could be Voldemort, could be one of the Death Eaters… anything. A monstrously huge figure emerged from underneath a little mountain of wooden beams and other debris, something bundled in it's arms._

_"Hagrid," Sirius choked. His teeth had even chattered a little with the violent shakes that insisted on taking hold of him._

_Hagrid started at the voice. "Sirius! What yeh doin' 'ere? Righ' horrible, isn't it all? Lily an' James…" the half-giant broke off in a sob, hindered in composing himself by the bundle in his arms that prevented him from reaching for a handkerchief._

_Sirius hadn't heard a word that was said. He was staring absently at the locks of red hair weaving in and out of the debris Hagrid had just stepped away from. He blinked, as if remembering where he was, realising what Hagrid had a hold of._

_"Is he ok?" he asked, stumbling over to look at his Godson. Harry stared back up at him through his muddle of dirty blankets, with the bright green eyes and a fresh lightning bolt scar that Dawn had dreamed about for years and never quite understood._

_"Jus' a cut, I think. I looked 'im over when I was pulling 'im outta all that, but I couldn't see nothin' wrong," Hagrid assured him with a great sniffle. "Dumbledore sent me ter fetch 'im right quick, before the muggles start swarming about."_

_Sirius weighed his options quickly. If Hagrid had been sent for Harry, then Dumbledore knew about… about this. But just like everyone else, Dumbledore thought Sirius was Secret Keeper. They'd all think he had done this on purpose. There wasn't a lot of time. "Give him to me, Hagrid. I'm his Godfather, I'll care for him," he stretched his arms out to receive the baby who'd always been delighted to be received by him. He'd take him to Dawn, and then he'd find Peter and kill the traitorous rat._

_"No. Dumbledore wants him, he said not ter leave this place without Harry and I'm not goin' ter, Sirius. I'm sorry," Hagrid carefully untangled one humungous hand from the bundle of Harry to squeeze Sirius' shoulder. The half-giant was crying again, and Sirius realised that he was, too. Life was over. He'd ended his friends' lives and his own was soon to be forfeited as the price for his fault._

_"Can I just say goodbye?" he asked quietly, whipping his tears away. He didn't deserve the luxury of crying. Hagrid thought a moment, then placed Harry gently in Sirius' arms to be cradled for the last time. Sirius held Harry close, his hand carefully supporting the little head just the way Dawn and Lily had shown him to. Funny how all women knew just the right way to hold babies, Dawn had been a natural from the moment Harry was born._

_"I'm sorry, little Pronglet. I'm so, so sorry," Sirius whispered, not noticing the funny look Hagrid gave him as he kissed the rosy little cheek and smoothed the tuft of messy black hair back. He closed his eyes against the crocodile tears glimmering in Harry's bright eyes and forced himself to hand the bundle back to Hagrid. "Take my bike, Hagrid. Take it and get Harry to safety. I've got things to take care of, I won't need it…"_

* * *

Everybody was still standing around, waiting for a suggestion. Ron was trying not to rub his throat too obviously, lest his mother begin fussing over him again.

"You know what?" Sirius said quietly. "Why don't the rest of you call it a day? There's only a bit of plastering left, I can managed. Harry, will you feed Buckbeak for me?"

"Are – are you sure?" Dawn asked. "If you want some help-"

"No. Just go."

It came out a lot harsher than he really wanted, but he had to get her away from him. Dawn was looking at him now, though. Glaring, specifically.

"Fine," she said coolly.

She turned on her heel and walked out without another word. Sirius let out a gruff sigh.

"Good one, Padfoot."

Harry gave him a funny look.

* * *

Dawn didn't feel like sulking alone, so she went looking for Remus, who was supposedly doing a little research for Dumbledore. She found him in the third floor drawing room with a stack of books on the table beside him, but it didn't look like he was getting very far. 

He was deep in conversation with Andromeda's daughter, whom Dawn had passed by on her way into the house the night before. Dawn had no idea what they'd been talking about because when she walked in, it shocked them both into silence, like they'd forgotten there were other people in the house. Dawn smiled apologetically.

"Dawn, I thought you were in the attic with the others," Remus said to recover himself. When she popped her head round the door to say hello, he hadn't realised a conversation with Tonks would be so involved and interesting. Whatever her fluoro hair and propensity to fall over suggested, she was a rather bright young woman.

"I got sick of the smell of old cheese," Dawn said, but Remus got the message loud and clear. 'I've been in the same room as Sirius all day and NO I don't want to talk about it.'

He moved on, turning back to Tonks.

"Tonks, do you remember Dawn Summers?" he said by way of introduction.

"A little bit," the young witch admitted, giving Dawn a bright smile that was wholly her father's. She'd been pretty young when Sirius went into Azkaban – Dawn had visited Andromeda a couple of times after that, but they soon lost touch.

r

"Wotcher, Dawn."

"Hey. Still throwing peas at anyone who calls you by your first name?" Dawn plopped into a free armchair.

Tonks laughed, throwing her head back. "More likely to throw a bat-bogey hex these days."

They chatted away for a few more minutes about how Tonks' parents were going, and how ineffective the Ministry could be with certain Pureblood families buying the Government to suit their own agendas. Finally the conversation turned to Remus and his many books.

"I'm looking for information on a certain demon species," Remus explained. "Albus found a spell, he hasn't told me exactly what it's for, but apparently the only ingredient we can't pick up in Diagon Ally is the egg of this demon."

Dawn leaned forwards a little in her seat. Sad and lonely and kind of pathetic as it was, demons were her thing now. It was what she knew best.

"What kind of demon?"

"A Gora demon."

Dawn almost started to laugh – she'd come across a Gora back in Sunnydale, when she was still just a kid. Then she remembered why she'd come across the Gora in the first place. She and Spike had been gathering ingredients for a spell. A resurrection spell. She didn't feel like laughing anymore. She felt like waltzing into Hogwarts and kicking Dumbledore in the shin, demanding to know what the hell he thought he was playing at. Who was he planning on resurrecting? And why?

"Kitten? What is it?"

She shrugged. "Nothing, Rem. Just checking the memory bank. Empty."

He looked like he didn't quite swallow it, so Dawn gave him a vacant smile and before he could question it, the kids all piled in and any Order talk had to be put on the backburner. They played Wizards' Chess and Exploding Snap (because Patience was ten times more frustrating when the cards exploded every time someone got on a roll) until Fred Apparated in to announced that dinner was ready, then Disapparated within the blink of an eye. Dawn sighed. Great – another forced hour with Mr If-I-Pretend-You-Don't-Exist-Nothing-Is-Wrong.

Luckily there was a pretty full house for the meal and Dawn managed to get herself up the opposite end of the table from Sirius. She fell into conversation with Hermione about French fashion designers. It wasn't a topic she would've picked the girl to be up on, but she just seemed to enjoy knowledge for knowledge's sake in any form. Tonks and Ginny, sitting opposite them, did not seem too enthralled by the conversation. They more readily jumped into a debate with Ron over whether or not the Chudley Cannons had it in them to win two championships in a row. Dawn and Hermione quickly dissolved any semblance of reason in that discussion by claiming that the Cannons should be banned from the Quidditch League in their horrible orange uniforms until they got a decent stylist. Ginny and Tonks couldn't find fault in that logic, so Ron was left to defend his team on his own.

It was a couple of hours later when Dawn finally saw the sanctuary of her room again. It was a cruel joke of planning that her room was only a few doors down from Sirius', he passed her without acknowledging her in the least just as she reached her door.

"You know, sooner or later you're going to have to look at me."

Sirius stopped dead. But by the time he turned around, all he caught was the slamming of Dawn's door. He took a few angry steps towards it, ready to burst in and tell her exactly what he thought about having to look at her. Then he stopped again. What if the whole thing just turned into a repeat of last night? He couldn't take it if that scene between them was put on a continuous loop.

"Whatever," he muttered, and a second later his own door slammed in response to hers.

* * *

_Who needs that sentimental bullshit anyway?_

_You know it takes more than just a memory to make me cry…_


	3. I Don't Know You Anymore

**Disclaimer:** Own nothing. Dawn and all things Buffy the Vampire Slayer still belong to Joss Whedon, and all the Harry Potterness still belongs to JK Rowling. I Don't Know You Anymore is by Savage Garden.

Huge thanks to everybody who has reviewed and waited patiently for me to update. Your support has been the driving force behind this update!

* * *

CHAPTER TWO

**I Don't Know You Anymore**

_I'll be courageous if you can pretend that you've forgiven me…_

Dawn's first week at Order Headquarters passed more quietly than she could stand. Harry was flat-out refusing to speak to her, she knew that she needed to find a way to get the past all out in the open with him, but first she'd need to figure out a way to get him to stay in the same room as her for more than five minutes. Things with Sirius were almost as bad. He spoke to her only when absolutely necessary, and as if he was proving a point, still stubbornly refused to look at her.

If it wasn't for Remus keeping her sane, she would've given up after two days and scurried back to Rio with her tail between her legs. Plenty of demons to pummel in Rio. Not that the Weasley clan weren't doing their best to help her settle in – Molly and Arthur were always ready for a cup of tea and a chat, and the twins considered it their sworn duty in life to make sure there was constantly laughter somewhere in the gloomy old house.

Ron wasn't exactly friendly (loyalty to Harry, Dawn figured) but he was too aware of his mother's presence to be outright rude. Ginny and Hermione rallied around her at every chance they got, both glad to have a little more girl power at their disposal in a house full of boys. Plus Hermione often got annoyed with Sirius for kicking his foul little house-elf, Kreacher, up the butt whenever they crossed paths. And Ginny was a right little firebrand – she had a wicked streak a mile wide and could talk for twelve hours straight. It was hard for a Marauder not to get along with her. James would've been lobbying to have her as his daughter-in-law, if he was here. But it was obvious that Harry hadn't yet woken up to what was right under his nose. He must've inherited that from Lily. She'd been introduced to a few of the new Order members who'd popped in and out throughout the week, and Remus had filled her in on any of the minor details Dumbledore had missed when they had spoken. She hadn't seen the Hogwarts Headmaster since that evening in his office, and as she slotted into the kitchen late one evening for her first Order meeting of the new war, she hoped to have a quiet word with him at some point. She had a bone to pick with him about spells using Gora eggs.

It was eleven-thirty, the kids had all been ordered upstairs and Arthur had warned he'd put charms all over the house to let him know if they tried anything like sneaking back down to listen, and witches and wizards were piling in.

Dawn didn't recognise anybody at first, there were only twenty or so members of the new Order, and a high percentage of the old Order members were dead, or worse. Dawn shuddered with memories. She'd been at the crime scene when Alice and Frank Longbottom had been discovered tortured into insanity. It had been a surprisingly sterile crime scene, except for the door blown in, but the Cruciatus was a bloodless curse. Only a few small patches of vomit and the fact that the man she'd called Frankie back at Hogwarts no longer recognised her stood as evidence to the horror they'd gone through.

Dawn sighed. She would never forget that day – Moody was almost as grief-stricken as Augusta Longbottom at the loss of Frank and Alice, and Alice looked around in bewilderment, hearing Neville's cries but no longer realising that he was her son. No – she couldn't do this right now. Now wasn't the time for bad memories, now was the time for focus.

There were a couple more people descending the stairs to the kitchen and finally she recognised somebody she was actually happy to see.

"Minerva!"

Her old head of House had insisted they were all adults, and equals, from the hour of their graduation, but calling her by her first name still felt a little strange, even now.

"Dawn! Wonderful to see you."

McGonagall stopped to chat, quizzing Dawn in her usual way about anything that came to mind, and muttering useful titbits about what various members of the Order had been up to that would help her keep up with the meeting. They were standing right next to the door now, it was impossible not to smell Mundungus and his old tobacco as he stumbled through, and Dawn couldn't miss the swish of robes that heralded the arrival of someone she was not particularly looking forward to seeing.

"Snape."

"Summers."

He looked like the same old Snape, sallow, greasy, and generally mean – only now he was slightly wrinklier. And he had still yet to learn the art of cracking a smile. She couldn't resist a joke – just a little one.

"What, no flowers? And here I was hoping you'd mellowed in your old age."

"And here I had assumed you had matured in yours," he returned dryly.

Dawn grinned savagely. She had always been morally opposed to picking on Snape when he was outnumbered and generally just a huge loser, but now all bets were off. They were adults now, and a good, childish, insult-slinging match was just what she needed to vent her frustrations. She gestured to his perfectly midnight attire.

"Love this new look you're going for, but are you sure the colour quite suits? I mean, those robes could be a little blacker, don't you think?"

Snape's black eyes narrowed, for a half a second his glance flickered to Sirius, apparently deep in conversation with Remus and totally unaware of Dawn's existence. "Clearly you're in a foul mood tonight, Summers. I can only assume that Black has yet to allow you to crawl back into the bed like nothing's happened. I'd say you fools deserve each other, but it's so much more amusing to watch you both miserable and alone, whining about your pathetic existences."

"Oh, stop it, both of you," McGonagall muttered irately. "I'm getting too old to put up with this nonsense from students, let alone supposed adults!"

But Dawn couldn't resist one last parting shot. "Speaking of beds, managed to lose your virginity legitimately yet, or are the only notches on your bedpost still from your Death Eater days of rape and torture?"

McGonagall gasped; one of her Gryffindors should never hit below the belt, but Dawn excused herself and disappeared before Snape could retort. When she threw herself into the chair next to Tonks, the young witch grinned at her.

"You enjoyed that, didn't you?"

"Just a little bit."

An enormous Shaft look-alike came to sit with them – Tonks introduced him as Kingsley Shacklebolt, the Auror in charge of the manhunt for Sirius. Dawn grinned.

"And how's that working out for you?"

Kingsley grinned back. "Apparently he's hiding out in Tibet at the moment."

"Really? Tibet?" Dawn raised her eyebrows. "Have you managed to score a free trip to Tibet on that information yet?"

Kingsley's laughter was like thunder – a great, rolling, booming thing that turned heads. But before he could reply, there was a swish of purple robes at the door and Dumbledore was beaming at the group.

"Wonderful, wonderful," he said, as if they'd just thrown him a surprise party. "Good to see most of you are here – Alastor's on guard duty tonight, so it's just Sturgis we're waiting to hear from now."

Molly finished conjuring chairs and those who were still standing slid into them. Remus had set a teapot on the stove before rejoining Sirius, who was giving Snape filthy looks while Minerva wasn't watching.

"We've a new member with us tonight. Or, rather, we are rejoined by an old member," Dumbledore corrected himself, gesturing to Dawn. "Dawn Summers is quite the expert demon hunter, and she's looking forward to resisting Voldemort once more. Now, who'd like to report first? Severus?"

"There is not much to report at the moment," Snape said, gazing down his long, hooked nose at everyone. "The Dark Lord has Macnair leading the way to bring the giants onside. He suspects you are attempting to do likewise, Headmaster, but as yet has not discovered Hagrid and Madame Maxime. I have heard rumours that his attention will before long turn to his faithfuls in Azkaban. He may contact the Dementors in the hopes of breaking them out."

Dawn sat up a little straighter and saw Sirius do the same. Neither of them could stomach the thought of Bellatrix Lestrange back on the streets. She'd been half mad with power and evil when she'd been arrested, and Azkaban would've finished the job quite easily. Sirius' jaw clenched. He'd heard Bella screaming with the rest of them throughout the torturous nights in Azkaban. Over the years she'd become steadily more twisted, more vile. It would be safer to let a dragon loose in a kindergarten than to let her off that island.

Dumbledore looked slightly unsettled by the revelation, though he only showed it by the slightest crease in between his eyebrows. "Do you have any idea when he might make his move, Severus?"

"No," Snape said dryly. "Unfortunately I've had that information from Goyle, I believe Lucius Malfoy informed him, but we all know that Goyle himself has the memory of a newt."

"That might not be entirely fair," Dumbledore said mildly.

"To the newt," Bill Weasley muttered, and the extremely beautiful witch next to him threw back her mane of silvery hair and laughed.

"Oh, zis Beel, 'e is too funny!" she crowed in a thick French accent.

Sirius gave Bill the thumbs up, but Molly was looking at the French girl with a disapproving, slightly threatened frown. "Stay focused please, Fleur and Bill, we have a lot to get through and Dumbledore hasn't got all night."

'Fleur,' Dawn thought to herself while Dumbledore nodded graciously to Molly and carried on with the meeting. She'd heard Dumbledore mention that name… of course! Fleur Delacour – it was even in the International Magical News Bulletin, the four champions of the Triwizard Tournament. She was the part-Veela champion from Beauxbatons. No wonder they'd recruited her for the Order – if she could survive that tournament, she had to be a lot tougher than she looked. It was the blonde factor. Buffy had got away with it for years in Sunnydale before a few of the brighter vamps had wised-up and caught onto the act.

The meeting didn't last much longer, as there was nothing else of major importance to report. Lucius Malfoy was still to be seen stalking about the Ministry of Magic every other day, sometimes with Macnair, sometimes with the Minister himself. A couple of witches from the Department of International Affairs seemed quietly receptive of Tonks' suggestions about a returning danger, but she wasn't game enough to speak openly about Voldemort's return yet; Fudge's Senior Undersecretary was doing her best to have her beady eyes everywhere at once.

"Very well," Dumbledore said when Tonks had finished speaking. "The most important thing is that you keep your eyes and ears open. Don't do anything to rouse suspicion; I don't want anybody's jobs at risk."

He concluded the meeting by assigning the following fortnight's guard duties assignment. Dawn was a little crestfallen that she wasn't on the list, she'd been looking forward to the prospect of getting active for the Order again. If nothing else, it would give her something new to worry about for a change.

"Remus, a word?" Dumbledore said quietly as they all stood, and Dawn knew he was going to ask about the Gora. She strode right up to the old wizard.

"I need to talk to you."

Dumbledore looked mildly surprised – Dawn was usually the least likely of all the Marauders to interrupt – but Remus had joined them by this stage with a knowing look.

"It's ok, Albus. Dawn's been trying to help me with my research."

Dawn fought hard not to blush. She hadn't been 'helping' Remus so much as stalling him until she could find a way to convince Dumbledore that there was never, and would never, be any justification for a Resurrection Spell. The moment her eyes met Dumbledore's, she knew he could tell something was up.

"Why don't we meet in my office at ten o'clock tomorrow morning."

* * *

"Just like old times," Remus grinned, brushing a wrinkle out of his shabby robes as he and Dawn rode the moving staircase up to the Headmaster's office. Dawn had decided against robes in the summer heat, and was clad in a pair of jeans and a light t-shirt. She smiled back. 

"I feel like we should be getting our stories straight before the interrogation!"

They emerged into the office through the waiting open door and were waved into seats at once.

"Good morning," Dumbledore called, though there was a hint of tiredness behind his cheery greeting.

"Morning, Albus," they returned.

There was a beat of silence, then Dumbledore smiled expectantly. "Well, Dawn? I believe you have some concerns you'd like to share with me?"

"Yeah, I want to talk to you about this Gora egg you're after," she began, and when Dumbledore continued to stare at her with polite expectancy, she added, "I don't think you should do it."

"Do what exactly, my dear?"

"The spell!" Dawn burst out. "I'm not stupid, Albus, I know what a Gora egg is used for. Hell, I've used one myself! And you can't do it – it's wrong – you shouldn't… I won't just stand by and let you perform a Resurrection spell!"

Remus inhaled sharply, but Dumbledore's only reaction was a gently knowing look. "Dawn, I can understand how you came to the conclusion that the use of a Gora egg indicates a Resurrection spell, but I assure you I would never attempt such a thing."

Dawn's mouth opened and closed a few times and she suddenly felt about three inches tall.

"But…"

"Yes, of course, the first concrete evidence that reached my ears of such a spell being possible was our discussion after the murder of your wonderful foster parents," Dumbledore admitted and the fleeting, faded images of Harold and Cecilia Potter drifted across Dawn's heart.

She and James had been nineteen when the Dark Mark had been set over the two bodies in Godric's Hollow (they thought Voldemort must've murdered Harold himself), and only the dire need for a safe house for his wife and son could ever convince James to return there.

But Dumbledore was still talking, explaining his theory. "For many years I did nothing with that information, believing as you do Dawn, that those at rest should be left in peace. But then, of course, Voldemort struck Godric's Hollow once more, leaving Harry orphaned and almost entirely defenceless."

"Almost entirely…?" Dawn murmured, not sure why Dumbledore was heading down this path but knowing it would be important.

"There was one protection lingering over Harry, the force of love that Lily had evoked in shedding her blood for her son; as you both well know, Voldemort could not touch him."

"I don't understand," Dawn finally admitted, when Dumbledore lapsed into silence to give them an opportunity to respond. "I don't see the connection between Lily's sacrifice and the Gora egg."

"That's because I have not been entirely honest with you, Dawn. Do you remember our discussion, when you appealed for my aid in gaining custody of Harry?"

_

* * *

_

_They were still dressed in mourning; Dawn had collected Harry from Privet Drive for his parents funeral that morning, and was refusing to take him back without meeting with Dumbledore over it. So here she was, sitting across the desk from the grieved-looking old wizard with a half-asleep infant clinging to her._

_Harry hadn't been out of her sight for more than a few minutes all day. He was a playful baby by nature, and it was ominously telling to Dawn that he'd leapt at her as soon as she'd arrived at the Dursley's, and would only allow her to put him down without screaming if he was going to Remus._

_"How is he?" Dumbledore asked, voice hushed._

_"Ok at the moment – but if you could organise a bottle…"_

_"Of course."_

_There were a few moments while a house-elf (Locky, sobbing pitifully at the sight of 'poor master Prongs' dear little baby') had a bottle of formula prepared and Dawn settled Harry more comfortably in the crook of her arm._

_"I know why you're here, Dawn."_

_"I can't take him back there. Please, can't he come to me now? I'm his guardian and I swore I'd take care of him."_

_But the old wizard was shaking his head. "I can't allow it, Dawn. I'm sorry, it's just not safe."_

_"Not safe?" Dawn spat, her eyes hardening. She would've been on her feet, but Harry was still in her arms. "What do you mean by that, Albus? If you've got something to accuse me of, I think you'd better come out and say it right now."_

_Dumbledore just looked at her sadly. "Dawn, if I believed for a second that you were in league with Voldemort, or in any way complicit with what happened, I would never have let you anywhere near Harry. Surely you realise that."_

_Dawn was beyond caring about gentle words and reassurances; she wanted to take her godson home, where he belonged. "Then why isn't he coming home with me? You know damned well there's nobody left in the world who loves him like I do. Petunia hated Lily, and Vernon's a pig, they'll never give Harry the home I will."_

_"I know you love him as if he was your own, Dawn, and you can be a part of Harry's life. Nobody can stop you visiting him whenever you like, but I can't let you take him. He's better off growing up in the muggle world."_

_"So I'll live in the muggle world!" Dawn yelled, and Harry's sleepy eyes popped open at the sound of her voice. She made a soothing, shushing noise and he settled quickly._

_"You're a target yourself, Dawn. It would never be entirely safe. He'll be hidden, and safe in the muggle world. The Dursley's is the best place for him, and that's my final word."_

* * *

Dawn remembered the day well. She'd ended up on her feet, Harry squirming in her arms, screaming that she'd take him away forever and that he was just a stupid old man and her family had nothing to do with him. Dumbledore hadn't risen to her bait, he'd stayed quiet and calm and waited for his opening. He was even crying slightly to see her pain when he told her, soft, but firm, that he had Harry's best interests at heart, and he would do everything in his power to keep him safe. Dawn had known then, that if she stood in Dumbledore's way, she'd never see Harry again. Distraught and beaten on every level, she'd finally promised to return Harry to his aunt and uncle's house. Dumbledore gave her a few moments to relive the memory in her mind before he pressed on. 

"What I didn't tell you then was the full reason Harry needs to remain at the Dursley's when a much more fitting guardian was begging for him. You see, when Lily sacrificed herself to save her son, she created a protection with her love that could only be upheld if Harry remained in the care of a member of that blood line."

"Petunia," Dawn breathed, remembering how resigned, even if unwilling Lily's sister had been to her nephew's presence. "She knew – you told her."

"I told her only enough so that she would understand that Harry's life depended on her," Dumbledore admitted. "However she felt about Lily, or Harry for that matter, Petunia could not willingly abandon her nephew to death."

"Made his life a living hell though," Dawn muttered. "Why couldn't you tell me this fourteen years ago? All this time I thought it was something wrong with me, that you were keeping Harry away from me as much as anyone else. Do you know what that was like?"

"I know. I watched you struggle with life after James and Lily's death, Dawn, but I couldn't bring myself to tell you the truth about Harry's blood protection. I wondered if it would make you give up completely, and then before I knew it, you were gone. It has been one of my many regrets, and I'm sorry."

Dawn sank into silence. She didn't want to respond to that just yet. Remus broke in to steer the conversation along.

"So what's this got to do with your Gora egg?"

"Well," Dumbledore said, unfolding himself from his seat so he could pace. "I have a theory that, even though Voldemort, in using Harry's blood to return to his body, voided part of that protection so he can now touch Harry, we might be able to reverse it."

"So we aren't going to resurrect any one person, just the blood bond?" Remus clarified.

"It's risky," Dawn said, rejoining the conversation with a shake of her head. "If this screws up, who knows how it could affect Harry, Petunia, even Lily. You could remove the protection altogether, or worse, you could accidentally resurrect Lily! What are you going to do if she wakes up in her coffin, closed in and scared and not knowing what's happening to her?"

"I've spent months on this," Dumbledore promised, going to a cupboard and taking out a single sheet of parchment, which he handed to Dawn. "I believe I've managed a ritual which minimises the risk to Harry and Petunia, and poses no threat to Lily. The last thing I would want to do would be to meddle with the dead."

Dawn read the parchment. He'd certainly compiled a list of magical compounds which would be powerful, and a ritual which would be relatively safe. She didn't say anything for a long time, but the two wizards in the room seemed content to wait. Finally, she put the parchment back on Dumbledore's desk.

"Gora demons usually inhabit enclosed, dank spaces. Deep caves, but if they're too close to civilisation a sewer will do. They're protective of their eggs, though they'll keep to themselves mostly and feed on small animals, until you go for their young. Then they'll rip you limb from limb."

Remus was staring at Dawn incredulously. She'd watch him read useless book after useless book, and all along the knowledge they needed was in her brain. He was sorely tempted to hex her.

"Thank you for the information, Dawn. I believe I shall be able to track down our quarry much more easily now," Dumbledore smiled.

"You're welcome," Dawn said. "I have one request though – I get to be in on the mission. I'm going crazy doing nothing at Headquarters!"

Dumbledore chuckled. "It's a deal."

"And I want in on the next guard duty roster, too," she pressed.

"All right, all right, Dawn. I understand. You've got it."

For the first time that morning, Dawn smiled at him.

* * *

Dawn and Remus hadn't returned to Headquarters immediately after their meeting with Dumbledore, as Remus had wanted to stop by his own place and check that everything was still in order. It was a tiny cottage set deep in the woods, a short walk away from the nearest village so that Moony could have the run of the place without posing any risk to anyone on the full moon. The cottage bore the telltale signs of werewolf inhabitation, but all the locks and wards were securely in place; only a layer of dust over everything stood as testament of Remus' continuing absence. 

Remus whizzed through his home, double-checking his wards, and grabbing a few extra books and robes, which he placed in his battered old suitcase. While he was locking up once more, Dawn shrank his suitcase so it could slip easily into the pocket. They walked towards the village, before they entered Remus slid out of his robes revealing a shirt and well worn slacks underneath, the robes slung over his arm like a jacket.

They had lunch in a café in the village, talking over all they had learned that morning in low voices until Dawn finally felt that she couldn't put off going back to Headquarters any longer without making the others worry. She paid for their lunch and as soon as they were far enough into the tree line that they could no longer be seen, they Disapparated with a little pop.

* * *

Harry was not having a good day. He'd awoken to Ron's grunting snores in the early hours of the morning with a splitting headache and had not been able to get back to sleep. Then the portrait of Mrs Black had screamed so shrilly he thought he felt blood oozing out of his ears because one of the twins had dropped one of their prototype fireworks down the stairs on the way to breakfast, which certainly hadn't helped his headache. He had been considering asking Mrs Weasley for a headache potion, but it was clear from her puffy eyes and the mountain of pancakes she'd made that her mother-hen routine was in full swing, and he half suspected she'd blame his headache on Sirius' refusal to wrap him in cotton and treat him like a precious porcelain doll. Ron whispered in his ear as they sat down that today was Percy's birthday, which explained Mrs Weasley's mood and Harry resigned himself to the dull pounding in his temples. 

After breakfast, Mrs Weasley announced that they had the morning off from housework, but Fred and George's loud whoops were premature; they were going to have a homework day whether they liked it or not. So the soon to be fifth years (well, if Harry was lucky enough to make it to his fifth year) sat around the gloomy kitchen table under mounds of books and parchment while Mrs Weasley banged about with the oven, baking enough cupcakes to feed the entire Order twice over. Hermione of course had already finished all her assignments, but could not resist the opportunity to read ahead; though they had not received their Hogwarts letters yet, she had already purchased a copy of _Standard Book of Spells, Grade Five_, by Owl Order and was four chapters in.

Harry sat staring blankly at the painfully tedious essay Snape had set, simply to torture his students during their brief spell of freedom from his dungeon classroom: Explain in detail the advantages and disadvantages of using the horn of the tropical black carnivorous toad in poisons. Harry felt he could answer the question in one sentence; the horn, when powdered, was virtually undetectable by sight or smell and so people would drink it without being aware that they were being poisoned until their throats closed over and their blood vessels burst, but powdering the horn was dangerous in the first place, as if you breathed in the powder, you would poison yourself. Unfortunately, Snape wanted two feet of parchment on the subject, so Harry was stuck poring over dusty volumes full of disturbing pictures of poison victims that Sirius had dug out of his father's library for him. He rested his head in his hands, squeezing at his temples as if that would help relieve the pressure in his head.

After a while, Hermione's voice filtered through to him and he looked up. "Harry? Is – is everything all right?"

She was speaking in a very tentative voice, her hand half stretched out as if she wanted to pat his shoulder but wasn't quite game. Harry looked away quickly. They were always like that with him now, Ron and Hermione, always acting as if he was going to explode at any moment. Just because he'd been angry they'd kept so much from him when he was stuck alone in Privet Drive, and just because he adamantly refused to have anything to do with Dawn. Ron wasn't as bad as Hermione there; whenever Harry went on a rant about how she had willingly abandoned him and Sirius to their fates and run off when they'd both needed her, Ron quietly agreed that he'd be angry too, but would not answer when Harry asked if he would ever be able to forgive such a sin. But Hermione almost acted as if she was on Dawn's side ("Oh, go on, Harry, give her a chance. She knew your parents too you know, and your grandparents. I bet there's loads she could tell you about your family if you asked. And I'm sure she's really, really sorry about leaving you with the Dursleys.") Clearly, Hermione did not understand at all what it meant to be left with the Dursleys if she was so willing to forgive and forget.

Hermione was still looking at him with a worried little frown, and Harry realised that if he didn't answer soon, he'd have Mrs Weasley mothering all over him.

"I'm fine," he muttered. "This essay is just driving me mad," he added, which was not technically a lie.

"Ok," Hermione said, though he could tell from the look on her face that she didn't quite believe him. It must be a girl thing, he mused, Hermione was always so much harder to fool about his mood than Ron.

There were a few minutes of silence, then, "Harry, if that book's no good I found this one to be very useful."

Hermione had dug a thick tome out from one of her several stacks of books and pushed it across to him. Ron looked up angrily.

"And what about me, eh? I'm having just as much trouble with this bloody essay, you know."

"Watch your language, Ron," his mother snapped over her icing bowl.

"You?" Hermione scoffed, rounding on the redhead. "If you wanted my help then you shouldn't have laughed at me when I was working hard on my homework at the beginning of the holidays, and you were reading Quidditch magazines!"

Harry groaned. He was just about to pick up the damned book and smack them both over the head with it to shut them up, when Mrs Weasley called "lunch!" over the din, and more to get away from his arguing friends than anything else, Harry offered to round up the twins, Ginny, and Sirius to come and eat.

The sounds of loud chatter and the clinking of plates and utensils weren't exactly soothing, but Harry found his headache slightly easier to bear with a few sandwiches and a large goblet of ice water in his system. Just as they were all finishing up, there were two brief 'pops' on the landing just outside the kitchen door, and a moment later Dawn and Remus had rejoined them.

Harry fought the urge to groan again. He didn't think he could handle the strain of trying to ignore Dawn all afternoon. A surprise visit from Snape would probably have been easier to deal with. Dawn and Remus called out a 'hello' to the group and took two of the empty chairs. Harry looked down at the scrap of crust left on his plate. Why did it have to be HER sitting across from him?

Mrs Weasley kicked into gear at once.

"Would you two like some lunch? I could whip up some more sandwiches in a heartbeat."

"No thanks, Molly, we've already eaten," Remus assured her.

"Oh, did you have something at the castle? Well, have a cupcake, anyway."

"Ooh, cupcakes! Yes please," Dawn grinned, perking up and grabbing one with purple icing. "We ate at Remus' after our meeting, he had to swing by and pick up a few things." She licked at a dribble of icing down the side of her cupcake.

"The castle?" Fred asked at once.

"A meeting?" George added.

"You were having a secret meeting with Dumbledore, weren't you?" they demanded together.

"I'd hardly call it a secret," Remus snorted.

"Well we didn't know anything about it til just now, and that's saying something," Fred pointed out.

All the Marauders chuckled at that. They used to be just as much of a hassle to the adults around them when they were that age.

"Well?" George prompted. "What was it about?"

"Nice try, guys," Dawn chuckled. "Do you really expect us to tell you that easily?"

"Can't let the children in on anything important," Harry muttered bitterly.

He thought he's said it pretty quietly, but obviously not quietly enough, because Dawn had whipped a reply out before anyone else could respond.

"That's not what I said, Harry," she said, and her voice sounded steely somehow.

Harry looked up, it was one of the first times he'd met her gaze squarely. "Might as well have. That's what's happening, isn't it? Keep Harry in the dark – even though he's the only one who saw Voldemort come back, he's too little to know anything about what's going on!"

"Har-" Sirius began quietly from down the table, but stopped. Without her stare leaving Harry's for a second, Dawn had held up a hand towards Sirius and he fell silent at once, as if he was respecting her wishes and staying out of the argument he could feel bubbling up in his very blood.

"Not absolutely everything we do is directly connected to you, Harry." He thought for a second that her eyes seemed a little darker than normal, but her voice was still clear and steady and the look was gone before he could be sure it was even there. "Quite frankly, what we were talking about is none of your business, it was a confidence between myself, Remus and Dumbledore that you have no right to demand us to break."

Harry was a little shocked at what she'd said, but he hid it behind his sneer. He knew that the entire house was raptly watching the argument; he could feel the eyes swinging between himself and the woman sitting opposite him.

"As if I believe you. I'm not stupid, you know… Or at least you'd know if you'd ever bothered to get to know me… I know Dumbledore thinks I'm too much of a kid to be counted and that's why he tried to keep me at the Dursleys and that's why he won't even talk to me."

"Nobody thinks you're childish," Dawn said, studiously ignoring his personal dig at her. "I know you're feeling like you got a pretty raw deal at the moment," – Harry snorted – "but have you ever stopped to consider that the reason Dumbledore wants you in the dark AT THE MOMENT is because you've got enough crap to deal with already? We're not stupid either, you know. And we all know that eventually you'll be up against Voldemort again whether we like it or not, so right now Dumbledore's keeping as much of the distractions away from you as he can."

Harry's jaw dropped in disbelief. She was giving him the 'it's for your own good' speech? The headache, the potions essay, everything that had been annoying him all day all boiled over, he leapt to his feet without consciously deciding to; rage had taken hold of him.

"Who are you to tell me – where does Dumbledore get off deciding – why – I DON'T WANT TO HEAR THIS CRAP FROM YOU! I'M SICK OF YOU PEOPLE THINKING YOU CAN CONTROL MY WHOLE LIFE!"

The whole table was frozen in shock at the outburst. Fred and George were absentmindedly popping chunks of cake into their mouths like they were inhaling popcorn at the movies. Harry was still standing, glaring down at Dawn, his chest heaving as he struggled to control his rapid breathing. Dawn herself was still seated, but those who knew her best could tell that she was easily as angry as Harry. It was almost like watching her argue with Lily all over again – one a wild tempest, the other a quiet, biting fury.

Dawn's whole face was shining with passion as if there was a fire lit just underneath her skin. Her voice was shaking slightly now with the effort to keep it from becoming a wild Banshee shriek. "You know what, Harry? I take it back – maybe you are too childish to be trusted with Order information. If you want to be treated like an adult, then why don't you GROW UP!"

Before Harry could register it all, Dawn had slammed her cupcake (now deformed from being clenched in her fist) down on the table and stormed from the kitchen.

* * *

She'd been holed up in her room for about ten minutes, slumped on the edge of her bed, facing the wall and crying as silently as possible when she heard the first tap at the door behind her. She ignored it; it had to be Remus checking that she hadn't either hung herself from the shower rail or started throwing all her worldly possessions back into her case. Hopefully he'd give up and let her lick her wounds in peace. She wished she'd brought her cupcake with her. 

There was another knock. Then another, and another, and another. Dawn huffed.

"Unless there's an apocalypse waiting at the front door, PISS OFF!" she screamed as best she could through her choking tears.

Instead, the door opened and the figure on the other side strutted defiantly into her room, shutting the door behind him. He shrugged. "It is my house, you know, and Dumbledore would do his block if I went for a wander so I can't really 'piss off'. And since when do you use language like that?"

Dawn was so thrown by the fact that it was Sirius was crossing the floor to sit a couple of feet away from her on the bed that she just sniffled and answered. "Since everything sucks so much. I always knew that when the time came I was making everything so much harder on myself by leaving, but I never thought… I guess I was stupid not to realise that it might be too hard to come back."

Sirius just watched her crying for a while without responding. He wasn't sure what to say now that he was here. After she'd fled the kitchen, Harry had stormed off to his own room with Ron and Hermione trailing nervously behind him, but for some reason he'd stopped Remus coming up here, wanting to do it himself after ignoring her for the whole week. Maybe a tiny part of him felt guilty that he hadn't done anything to make their sticky situation more bearable for her. He, at least, had Harry's affection to draw comfort from, while she only copped his teenage angst and rage. Dawn was still crying, swiping in frustration at the tears that trickled determinedly down her cheeks.

"Don't cry, Dawn," he said gently. "You know all men are petrified of women when they cry."

Dawn gave an extra hard sniff, which he supposed was the closest he would get to a laugh.

"I'm doing a helluva job making him thoroughly hate me, aren't I? He's gone from ignoring me to screaming at me. I don't know which is worse."

He patted her arm, but it seemed like awkward gesture, laden with their history. It was lame when he thought of the way they used to hug and the warmth that spread through their whole bodies, but he wasn't game enough to risk that much contact yet.

"I don't think he really hates you. He's royally ticked off at you, sure, but I think deep down he actually needed that. I don't think he's had a whole lot of people get so worked up about him throughout his life. He goes from indifference and dislike at the Dursleys, to awe and instant celebrity at Hogwarts, but celebrity isn't very passion-inspiring. I think maybe you scared him a bit by getting so worked up over him."

Dawn shook her head, her eyes finally starting to dry. "Doesn't exactly make it a forward step, though, does it? I mean, I knew there was a chance that he'd never really forgive me, but all I want is for him to listen to me, just once, and then maybe one day he'll understand…"

Sirius' brow furrowed. It felt weird to be talking so easily with Dawn, but he didn't exactly want it to end, so he tried to keep her talking.

"Well, what do you want him to understand?"

Before Dawn knew it, she was pouring it all out. Not only how hard it had been for her to leave Harry in the first place, but everything she had learned from Dumbledore that morning, all the things he hadn't told her when James and Lily had died all came tumbling out of her mouth. Sirius listened raptly until she fell into silence again.

"I didn't know all that," he said quietly. "I thought you must have known about the blood protection and everything. I didn't know you'd tried to get custody of Harry."

Dawn laughed humourlessly. "Of course I did. What have you been thinking, that I just picked up and skipped off into the sunset the moment the dust settled? If that's what everybody thinks, it's no wonder you two can't stand the sight of me."

"Dawn, don't think that…"

Sirius looked at his lap sheepishly. He should've known better. But then emotion was always good at distorting vision. Dawn looked like she was thinking along the same lines.

"I guess our communication has sort of broken down for the last, oh, say, decade and a half," she mused.

He smiled slightly. "Yeah. It's probably time to work on that, isn't it?"

Her eyes widened. "You mean that?"

He swallowed. "Look, I don't know what this means for us – things are pretty messed up there. But I s'pose it's like being parents, I mean with Harry to look after and all. We both want to take care of him, and we both want what's best for him. Well, I reckon two heads are better than one there, and we can't work together if we can't get along."

"So where does that leave us?"

Sirius smiled again and held out a hand to shake. "Friends?"

Dawn smiled, some of the brightness returning to her face. "Friends," she pledged, shaking his hand and feeling its warmth.

Then, by instinct, they both leaned in and hugged on it.

"Thanks, Padfoot," Dawn whispered as they separated.

"What are friends for, Kitten?" he grinned. And without another word, he produced a fresh, undeformed cupcake from his robe pocket and handed it over.

* * *

Another chapter down… who knows when the next will come! XX Love Anoron XX 


	4. A Walk On Part In The War

**Disclaimer:** Own nothing. All the Harry Potter stuff belongs to JK Rowling, all the Buffy the Vampire Slayer stuff belongs to Joss Whedon. Again, I say, own nothing. The title 'a walk-on Part in the war' is taken from a line in Wish You Were Here, by Pink Floyd. Also not mine.

**A.N.** FINALLY! An update! Still love my reviewers and friends, even thought I don't have the time anymore to show you exactly how much I appreciate you. Sorry this is a bit rough – it's pieced together from scenes I wrote MONTHS ago and not really properly edited, so it won't be up to standard, I just wanted to get it out there. Thanks for reading!

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* * *

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**A Walk-On Part In The War**

"I'll be fine," Dawn said for the fifth time as she strapped a knife to her calf. "I've dealt with Gora Demons before, it won't be too hard to distract it while Snape grabs the egg." She triple-checked her waistband for her wand and accepted the double-headed axe Remus held out to her.

Sirius was lounging in one of the kitchen chairs, his feet on the table. But his hands were twitching nervously, giving him away. "And if things turn ugly, don't be afraid to use Snivelly as a human shield."

Dawn tried not to smile. "You got the port-keys?"

Sirius stood up and reached into his pocket. "They activate in about two minutes, set for right outside the Gora's cave. You just have to tap it with your wand to reverse it and come back."

He pulled out two silver wrist bands and handed one to Dawn. "Be careful," he breathed.

She grinned as she slipped it on. "You know me."

After some hesitation, and with much glaring, Sirius thrust the other port-key at Snape, who had stood by silent and impassive, as Remus had helped Dawn arm herself for their mission.

"If she gets hurt, you're dead," Sirius hissed.

Snape arched an eyebrow. "My objective is to obtain the Gora egg, Black. If your little girlfriend is still as foolish as the rest of you and gets herself into trouble, that's none of my concern."

Dawn sighed. "Thank God we don't have time for this crap. Let's just get this done and get back as soon as we can. If any of the kids realise I'm not in the house…"

Remus patted her shoulder. "You let us worry about the kids, Dawnie. Take care. You too, Severus."

Snape didn't bother to respond. Dawn grinned. "I'll be fine. Seriously!"

She didn't get any more out, at that moment she felt the tug at her navel and then she was whirling through time and space in a way that had never quite stopped making her insides churn. Then her feet hit solid rock.

"Oomph."

Bending her knees, Dawn absorbed the majority of the impact and immediately looked around. Dumbledore had chosen the perfect location. They were outside a mountain cave somewhere in the Scottish Highlands; miles below them tiny lights from a village into the night but around them all was perfectly still and silent.

"Anything?" Dawn breathed at a shadow to her left.

"No," the shadow replied.

"Good. Stay here – I'll check out the cave and we can plan our attack from there."

She didn't wait for a response; all the years of working solo had helped her to forget the concept of joint field command. And demons were her turf, anyway. Snape had only agreed to partner her on this mission after a fair amount of convincing from Dumbledore, as it was too near the full moon for Remus to be at full strength, and Kingsley and Tonks were too valuable as agents inside the Ministry to risk being either chomped up by a three-headed demon or caught with the highly classified, non-tradeable egg of the Gora. Sirius, naturally, had volunteered; Dumbledore had reminded him that he was forbidden to leave headquarters.

Dawn crept into the cave, keeping close to the wall and blending into the shadows until she was little more than a shadow herself. The Gora wasn't too far from the mouth of the cave, the moonlight shimmered on its scales, the three-quarter moon giving her enough light to count the eggs in the protective curl of the demon's nest.

Four. Good – they only needed one for Dumbledore's spell. Dawn slipped back outside to where Snape was waiting, his face, as always, set to scowl.

"Ok, it's fairly open in there, so I should be able to draw the Gora a fair way away from her eggs to give you some breathing room. The nest is about thirty feet in, on the left hand wall. Stick to the shadows and once you see an opening, take it," Dawn muttered.

Snape just stared at her as if she was a bug. Or worse, a filthy Mudblood. "You've been scrapping about like a muggle for far too long, Summers. Try to use your wand, perhaps even your brains. If that's at all possible."

He whirled and stalked straight into the cave, silent as ever but not being particularly careful for the occasion.

"Pansy," Dawn muttered. She followed, mumbling more obscenities and gesticulating with her axe.

The Gora was dozing lightly as they approached, but its tail was still curled tightly around the eggs and there was no way to get to them without literally getting their heads bitten off. Dawn rolled her eyes. All she needed was Spike and the stench of sewer and her sense of déjà vu would be complete. She stared pointedly at Snape, waiting to see what the self-appointed brains of the outfit would come up with.

It was a Stunning spell. Obviously he had not heard Dumbledore mention that Gora hide was almost as strong as dragon scales. And all at once the Gora was up and rearing, three heads snapping at the intruders. Snape's spell had ricocheted harmlessly of the Gora and burst against the cave wall.

"Nice one, genius!"

Dawn shoved Snape to the side and slammed the side of her axe into one of the heads, just to make sure all attention was squarely on her. It was kind of like her vague memories of playing dodgeball back at Sunnydale Junior High; a sport she'd never introduced to the Marauders because she felt they didn't need any encouragement when it came to throwing things at people. She ducked and dodged the three heads, using her axe just to keep the demon in check. Goras were known to be particularly vicious when provoked, but as a rule they shied away from the human population. She and Dumbledore had agreed at the outset that she was to cause as little damage to the demon as possible, unless, of course, necessary for self-defence.

Slowly but surely she managed to draw it far enough from the nest for Snape to get in and seize and egg. But as he was retreating the Gora's lashing tail struck him in the midsection.

Snape grunted and stumbled back, hitting the dirt but managing to keep the egg cradled safely to his chest. But the Gora had spotted him and roared, wheeling around to charge.

"Get out of here!" Dawn hollered.

Snape touched his wand to the port-key and was gone in the blink of an eye. Dawn's axe clattered to the ground, her hand reaching for her own wand.

She wasn't quick enough.

One set of teeth pierced her left side, another her right thigh, like shards of jagged glass cutting through her flesh. She screeched in pain. The Gora had her pinned and the third head was moving in to finish her off. She thought of Harry, and Sirius and Remus and something flickered in her heart and refused to die.

"No," she grunted.

With a sharp twist that tore at her wounds even further, she managed to get her left hand around her knife with only a heartbeat to spare. She thrust it up, piercing the neck of the Gora head about to tear out her throat and the Gora shrieked. Dawn managed to use the moment to wrench her body free. She collapsed, barely managing the strength to activate her port-key.

She was gone before she could hit the dirt.

* * *

Remus and Sirius had managed to allay the kids' suspicions about Dawn's absence by telling them she was taking a bath. They'd also managed to keep them well away from the kitchen, where Dawn's port-key would return her to (Snape's had been set to take him, and the egg, directly to Dumbledore's office). But Sirius had been fidgety for the entire time in which Dawn had been gone, and although Harry assumed it was just Sirius in one of his moods, Hermione and Ginny were beginning to mentally piece the clues together.

While the evening game of Exploding Snap was at its most riotous, and Hermione appeared to be completely absorbed in her book, Sirius flashed Remus a pointed look and made his way out the door. His wand had glowed with a momentary warmth which meant that someone had just crossed through the wards in the kitchen. Quietly, so as not to wake the snoring portrait of his mother, Sirius tiptoed downstairs and into the kitchen.

"Dawn!"

She was crumpled up on the stone floor, blood-soaked, barely conscious, with one hand wrapped around her wand, a red-coated dagger clutched in the other. Her only movements were little gasping spasms of pain.

Sirius didn't hesitate. He scooped Dawn up in his arms, wincing as she moaned, and rushed her straight up to her room. In the back of his mind, he could see the lifeless form of an innocent little girl in a tattered purple ceremonial dress, splayed at the foot of the steps of Hogwarts. It had been he who had carried her to safety that day, too. He hollered once for Remus, and then he was laying Dawn on her bed as gently as he could. When he took his arms away, his hands were sticky with blood.

Remus was only seconds behind, he barely needed to catch a glimpse of the state of his best friend before he was gone, straight off to contact Dumbledore. They were going to need Madam Pomfrey, and fast.

The whole house had been summoned by Sirius' yell; Harry, Hermione and the Weasleys were all jostling at the door, trying to figure out what exactly had happened. Molly and Arthur were trying in vain to dislodge them, but it took a commanding "Out of my way!" to get them scattering.

Harry didn't move, though. He stood, stock still, staring at Dawn, thinking about how pale she looked, and how he'd never seen so much blood in his life. His insides churned. This was the woman, in his mind, who had left him to rot in the Dursley's cupboard, but suddenly the world wasn't so simple. There was all this stuff in between the black and white and he couldn't figure out which it was. She knew his parents just as well as Sirius and Remus had, and there was so much she seemed to know about Harry himself. Not all the crap they went on with in all the papers, but the real things about who Harry was, things that had happened in his life before he'd ever even heard the words "Boy Who Lived" uttered together.

"Come on Harry," Remus said, firmly but gently pulling him away from the opening and closing the door so that Madam Pomfrey, with Sirius insisting on assisting, could work in privacy.

She began by having Sirius cut the clothing away from the wounds while she waved her wand in intricate patterns, conjuring a fully-stocked workstation. Dawn had lost a lot of blood, but no vital organs or arteries had been punctured, so the Matron began to clean and heal the skin with her wand. When she was done, she applied a liberal smothering of her trusty orange paste into the healing skin and watched as it was absorbed into Dawn's system. Pomfrey then checked all Dawn's vitals, and was apparently satisfied with the result, as she turned away from her patient and selected a vial of deep red potion from her conjured stores. She set it on Dawn's bedside table.

"Make sure she drinks this – all of it – as soon as she regains consciousness," she ordered Sirius. "It'll help her recover all that lost blood in half the time."

Sirius nodded. "Will do, Poppy. Thanks."

"You're welcome, Black. Keep an eye on her – I want her bed-bound, understand? And I'll be back tomorrow evening for a check-up."

Sirius whispered a quick spell and Dawn's ruined clothing was replaced by they pyjamas she'd left on the end of the bed – gold boxers and a little crimson t-shirt – and tucked her under the covers. Then he conjured himself an armchair and stationed himself as the bedside sentinel. Pomfrey let herself out, and Remus practically knocked her over, storming the room as soon as the door was opened. Harry was right on his heels.

"Is she all right?"

"She'll be fine, Moony," Sirius promised. "Just some deep gashes and blood loss; none of her vitals were even touched."

"The luck that follows that woman around," Remus muttered, smoothing Dawn's hair back and looking at her as if he was going to chain her down and see if that stopped her risking her life for more than five minutes. "It's not even bloody Tuesday!"

Sirius laughed shortly. "With Dawn, it's always bloody Tuesday!"

Harry was looking between all of them, not even trying to figure out what the joke was, but still trying to catch up with what the hell was happening. It looked like Dawn had been mauled by a dragon! "What - ? How - ?"

Sirius and Remus shared a look, for a moment both of them unsure as to what to tell Harry. Dumbledore's orders were that Harry (and the rest of the kids) remain on a strict 'need to know' basis when it came to Order matters. But what Dumbledore (and Molly) thought Harry needed to know was considerably less than what Sirius, and most especially Dawn, thought he needed to know. It was Sirius who finally answered.

"She was on a mission, Harry. Order stuff."

Harry visibly blanched. "D'you mean Death Eaters did that? Or Voldemort?"

"No," Remus jumped in. "It wasn't Death Eaters, Harry. It was a demon."

Harry drew a few steps closer, eyes wide. "A demon? What kind? What was she fighting a demon for?"

"Why don't we let Dawn explain for herself when she wakes up?" Sirius suggested. He was still partially second-guessing himself when it came to this whole 'parenting' thing, and his arguments with Molly when Harry had first arrived at headquarters over his parenting skills hadn't done much to bolster his confidence. The truth was, Dawn was much better at skirting the very thin line between what she wanted to tell Harry, what she could tell Harry, and what Dumbledore had expressly forbidden them from telling Harry.

"Right," Harry muttered, looking away. He'd been brushed off. Again.

There were a few minutes of silence.

"Well," Remus finally said, "I'll go and tell the others that Dawn's ok. And then, I need to rest. Let me know if you need anything, Padfoot. Good night, Harry."

Remus left, and Harry dithered for a moment, unsure as to whether he should follow or stay. Without even looking up, Sirius conjured another armchair on the opposite side of the bed. Harry sat.

There were a few more minutes of silence, then Sirius got up and straightened the covers over Dawn. He went over and stood at the window, looking out even though the shutters were drawn over the outside sky.

"She loves you, you know."

"What?"

Harry blinked. He'd been staring into nothingness and his eyelids had been rapidly drooping. He was wide awake now, though.

"She loves you," Sirius insisted. "You mean the world to her."

Harry shifted, looking suddenly irritable and glaring at the sleeping form on the bed in front of him. "You all keep trying to tell me that, but nobody can tell me why she left me at the Dursleys and I never heard from her again."

Sirius still wasn't looking at him, or at Dawn.

"It was my fault, Harry. I messed up pretty badly, telling James and Lily to make Wormtail their Secret Keeper without at least telling Dumbledore, or Dawn. And I didn't even try to explain. She was there that day, did you know? The day Wormtail framed me…"

* * *

_Dawn had heard the screams and seen the explosion in her vision. The force had knocked her down, she was huddled against the wall and only the clock across from her gave any indication that hours had passed since Sirius had left her alone in the dark. Nothing but those hands moved, nothing but the soft tick, tick, tick made a sound. The world had ended around her and she was still waiting for the memo._

_She came to a decision; stood and moved decisively towards the door, and then stopped. She knew she should be out there, doing something, but she didn't even know where to go. To James and Lily's? She'd already seen it in her mind, there was nothing left there, she'd had no sense of any of the Potters or Sirius still at Godric's Hollow. Dawn sighed, useless. Then there was a light knock at the front door, she jumped and reached for her wand._

_With stealth that had developed from a combination of her Auror training and the blood that flowed through her veins, Dawn crept to the door and peeked through the peephole. Half-moon spectacles and a flowing silver beard greeted her, Dawn unlocked the door to let Dumbledore through._

_"What's going on?" she demanded before the door had even closed behind him. He turned to face her, the light all but gone from his eyes. He put a comforting hand on her arm and Dawn had to fight to shove it off. She'd never been one to take bad news well._

_"Dawn, let's sit down a moment," he suggested in a more grandfatherly manner than usual. He hadn't been so softly spoken with her since the time in fifth year when Lucius Malfoy had tried to rape her._

_"Let's not," she pushed his hand away. "Tell me what's going on!"_

_"I'm sorry," he whispered, a tiny tear trickling down his cheek. "Voldemort found James and Lily. They're both … They're gone, Dawn. He killed them."_

_Suddenly taking a seat didn't seem like such a bad idea after all. Dawn took one right there on the floor again. James, her brother, and Lily, for whom she'd been bridesmaid… She didn't want to believe it. A part of her even refused to. "And Harry?"_

_"He is safe," Dumbledore promised. "It's too dangerous for me to tell you where he is tonight, but in time you'll be able to see him again. Trust that he will be cared for in the meantime."_

_Every heartbeat was slowed, painfully pronounced. Dawn's head pounded with grief, anger, and a new realisation. Sirius … "What about Sirius?"_

_Dumbledore's eyes flared to life again, blue flames of anger kindling in the unfathomable depths. "He is gone. He arrived at Godric's Hollow shortly after Hagrid was sent to retrieve Harry, but when Hagrid refused to let him take the boy, he left his bike and said there were things he needed to take care of. He hasn't been seen since."_

_Dawn closed her eyes in understanding. She was in love with the Death Eater who'd betrayed her family to death, and he'd fooled her so perfectly that she didn't even know. She barely listened, not particularly caring as Dumbledore went on to explain that Voldemort had been vanquished, but not destroyed by powerful, mysterious magics when he'd tried to curse Harry. She opened her eyes and the way she stared up at her ex-Professor made him go suddenly silent. Resolve face. A moment later, she was on her feet again and reaching for her leather jacket._

_"I'll find him," she growled, stalking out of the home she'd created with Sirius and leaving Dumbledore staring sadly after her._

_

* * *

_

_It hadn't been too difficult to track him down, really. Once the sun came up and the streets of London sprang to life, she asked around about a young guy with black hair and blue eyes … The sort of man women tended to remember passing by. She'd been directed downtown, led by the clues of muggles and her own sixth sense that usually helped her find Sirius when she needed him._

_She heard a shout from the next street over. A man's voice that had not quite lost its tendency to squeak even when he reached his manhood was yelling. Dawn broke into a run, but everything was in slow motion. It felt like she was trying to run underwater, she fought with all her might and still every step took a lifetime._

_"Lily and James, Sirius! How could you!" the voice bellowed, the sounds ringing in Dawn's ears as she struggled on. She rounded the corner, her feet all of a sudden stopping flat as she took in the scene with horror._

_Sirius was standing in the middle of the crowded street, reaching for his wand. And across from him, just metres away stood Peter, shaking with apparent rage as he screamed at Sirius. The muggles swarming around them were looking on with curious apprehension._

_"NO!" Dawn screamed, her throat tearing with the effort._

_Sirius swished his wand. The force of the explosion knocked Dawn back, when she steadied herself and looked up the carnage made her stomach lurch violently. Sirius stood now alone, Peter was gone. A pile of bloodied robes were all that remained, Dawn caught a peek of bloodstained flesh amongst the black material, no bigger than a little finger. Muggles were screaming and running in hysterics. Bodies littered the street which had been literally torn apart; the asphalt had been blown up and the sewer beneath was gaping at Dawn like a foul chasm._

_And there stood Sirius in the middle of it all, he took a look around at all the damage and started to laugh manically. His eyes met Dawn's horrified stare, he hesitated for a moment as the first tears began to rain down on her cheeks and then a fresh bout of humourless laughter overtook him. The noise drilled holes through Dawn's heart and she sank to the ground, still staring at what her lover had become, and cried for all that had been lost in the space of a heartbeat._

* * *

"She was begging me to give her something to defend me with, and didn't even give her a reason to believe in me."

Harry was staring at Sirius' back. When he'd first learned the truth of his parents' murder, he thought he'd been the only one really affected by it. Then he met Sirius and learned about all that had happened to him, and it was almost like the two of them shared this great, terrible secret. But now for the first time it was occurring to Harry that other lives had been touched, changed, ruined, just as his had.

"So she just left?"

Sirius turned around at last, took a long look at Dawn's sleeping figure, then looked at Harry. "No, Harry. She came to see me a whole bunch of times to try and get what had happened out of me, but for a while I'd lost it. I was half-mad with grief and the Dementors were keeping me that way at that time; I couldn't tell her anything and in the end I left her with no choice but to believe what they were all saying about me. She and I were engaged, you know, we'd been inseparable since we were your age – do you really think the Ministry was going to hand over custody of 'the Boy Who Lived' to the fiancée of the mass murderer at Voldemort's right hand who had betrayed his parents to their deaths?"

Sirius gave a dry, humourless laugh.

"But Dumbledore – "

"Can't fix everything, Harry," Sirius butted in. "He isn't God. Dawn was on her own when it came to guardianship of you, and she couldn't win no matter what she did."

Harry looked away, falling into a moody silence. Sirius had said 'Dumbledore can't fix everything' but Harry was so used to having the Headmaster looking out for him now that it was strange to think he'd just abandon a baby to the Dursleys without a fight. 'But then,' Harry thought bitterly, 'he's had no problem leaving me high and dry and attacked by bloody Dementors this summer, has he?'

Time stretched on, Dawn's deep, rhythmic breathing soon lulled Harry to sleep almost without the teenager realising it was creeping up on him, and Sirius sat alone in silence. He watched Harry, thinking about how he looked even more like James when his eyes – Lily's eyes – had closed. The nose was still a bit different, more like Mrs P's than anybody else's, but Harry was still nine-tenth's 'Potter' on the outside.

Finally Sirius looked away from his Godson, away from his thoughts about the best friend he would never know again, but he did not look at Dawn. He didn't know what it would do to his already stretched sanity if he did. Instead he stared towards the shuttered windows, listening to Dawn's breathing as it gained strength, hearing Harry's tiny snores in the background. Molly brought him a cup of tea at around midnight, but by the time Sirius thought to drink it, it had gone stone cold.

At about three AM, just as Sirius' mind was at its heaviest, it filtered through to him that Dawn's breathing had changed. It was lighter, and picking up speed. He made himself look at her.

He watched her eyes fight their way open, blink, and shift around the room. They met his. She tried to smile.

"How are you feeling?" His voice was hoarse, hushed.

This time Dawn did manage a tiny smile. "Like spaghetti."

It was then that Sirius remembered the potion Poppy had left. "Can you sit up?"

Dawn made a few attempts at pushing herself up, but she'd lost too much blood to have the strength left in reserve. Sirius eased her up, helping her scoot back to lean against the headboard.

"Drink this, it's to replenish your blood."

She eyed the liquid off like an old adversary before accepting the vial. She downed it quickly, nose wrinkled, and gave a little shudder of revulsion as she handed the empty vial back. Sirius had to hide a grin. If given a choice in the matter, he knew Dawn would have preferred going to the muggle hospital to be stitched up like a cushion with a split seam than be exposed to the pokings and potions of Poppy Pomfrey.

It wasn't until Sirius helped her to settle back down on the mattress that Dawn really had the chance to look at Harry. Sirius, she had expected to be at her bedside, and maybe Remus if it wasn't so close to the full moon. But not Harry. Unless of course he was looking to finish her off while Sirius wasn't watching. But he looked too innocent in sleep, and too like James, for her to be afraid of him hurting her. Harry's head was thrown back towards the ceiling, one leg and one elbow jutting out at odd angles over the arms of his chair.

"He looks uncomfortable."

"Yeah, I guess he does."

"Lay him down, Sirius. He can't sleep like that."

Sirius lifted Harry – he was far too light for his age – and laid him out on the mattress. It was easily big enough, and neither Harry nor Dawn took up much space. Harry stirred a bit, muttered something about a corridor that Dawn didn't quite catch, but settled back down and started snoring again.

Dawn smiled. Harry's snores sounded just like Lily's used to when she was worried about something. Back in their days of sharing a dorm at Hogwarts, it was usually an upcoming assignment or an upcoming Marauder prank. Dawn drifted back into sleep.

When she woke up a couple of hours later, Sirius was gone and Dumbledore had claimed his seat. She sat up much more easily this time.

"Hello, Dawn."

"Did you get the egg?"

"Yes, yes. But more importantly, are you alright?"

Dawn grinned. "Never better." She reached over and brushed Harry's hair back from his forehead. "Where's Sirius?"

"Making himself a good, strong cup of coffee, since he refuses to go to bed," Dumbledore replied, then let out a little sigh. "Dawn, I'm sorry I put you in such danger this evening. It was selfish of me to ask."

Dawn almost rolled her eyes. "You didn't ask, I volunteered, and this is the hazard of the job. I know the risks, Albus. I've been choosing to take them pretty much ever since you've known me. There's no room for blame in this job."

Dumbledore smiled, pride in his eyes. Then Dawn decided to open her mouth one more time.

"Well, Snape's inability to take orders from a Mudblood didn't help, but still…"

Harry gave a short, sharp snore and rolled over. The adults fell silent, watching to make sure he was still asleep before speaking again. Dumbledore looked away from his young student first. Dawn noticed the Headmaster's unwillingness to risk even the slightest connection with the boy, even when he was fast asleep. She knew it was only because Dumbledore feared that Voldemort would discover there was a connection between himself and Harry that he could abuse for information, but she didn't necessarily agree with his methods.

"Are you sure this is the way to go, Albus?" she asked. "Shutting him out like this? It'll go badly."

"It's the only way I can be sure of protecting him," Dumbledore said, and Dawn could see in the old wizard's eyes that he truly believed what he was saying. But that didn't mean she agreed with him.

"He doesn't understand why he's been frozen out, and it's hurting him. He doesn't need to be this angry."

Dumbledore stiffened slightly, a hint of steel flashing through his eyes. "I don't think we need to have this discussion, Dawn."

"I think you're wrong."

There was a moment of silence. Dumbledore had always been a man open to hearing the opinions of others, but it had been a long while since he'd been so openly challenged on a reasonable level (because clearly Fudge had left reason behind half a dozen delusions ago).

Sirius came back into the room, slightly more caffeine-fuelled, but took one look at the staring contest and decided it would not be wise to break it. Finally, Dawn decided to take the opportunity of an open floor presented by Dumbledore's silence.

"I'm not saying we should give him licence to know all the ins and outs of the Order," she quickly clarified.

Sirius looked away, again remembering how Molly had looked down on him on Harry's first night with them.

"But he has a right to know at least why he can't know anything. If we explain to him that Voldemort might get classified information through him – "

"Do you really want to burden him with that?"

Dawn sighed. "Better that he understands a little bit now, than find out everything the wrong way later. Believe me, I know how that goes. Albus, Harry's too like James at the end of the day. He may have Lily's sense, but it'll fly right out the window if he doesn't understand what's really at stake for him here."

Dumbledore was listening, but his face was giving nothing away. "What are you saying, Dawn?"

"I think it's time to tell him about the prophecy."

Sirius drew in a sharp breath. Harry had lost enough of his childhood already, hearing the prophecy that predicted he'd have to either kill or be killed would probably be the final nail in the coffin of his innocence.

"I know," Dawn replied, not even needing to hear Sirius voice his fears to understand them. "But we can't stop this from coming true unless we start acting. Voldemort's never going to stop going after Harry. How can we expect Harry to beat him – to survive – if he's not prepared? He's at too many disadvantages here as it is, and keeping him in the dark like this is just adding to them. Tell him about the prophecy."

Dumbledore didn't speak for a long time. He was leaning forward in his seat, staring at his long fingers clasped in his lap. Finally, he looked up.

"I might be tempted to agree with you Dawn, but the fact remains that whatever we tell Harry, Voldemort may be able to see if he discovers the connection between them. One of our strongest weapons is that we know the full prophecy while Voldemort does not. I will not risk that."

Dawn and Dumbledore were so intent on their hushed discussion that they did not notice Harry was beginning to stir. Sirius watched his godson closely, ready to alert the others should they risk him overhearing something he shouldn't. The potion was working at full force in Dawn now, colour was creeping back into her cheeks and her hands were moving more and more animatedly as she spoke.

"Albus, you're one of the best Occlumens in the world – teach Harry to close his mind. He can shut Voldemort out before Voldemort even knows he can get in, and then Harry can know what he needs to know."

"Shh," Sirius breathed. Harry was waking.

Dumbledore quickly cast a light Drowsiness Charm on the boy and stood to leave. "I appreciate your position, Dawn, but for now my decision stands. Harry can know nothing of the prophecy, and no more of the Order's business than is strictly necessary. I must go – we're still having trouble filling the Defence Against the Dark Arts post. I'm glad you're all right, Dawn. Good morning, Sirius."

"Thanks," Dawn muttered as her former Headmaster swept from the room. She turned to Sirius. "What do you think?"

Sirius didn't answer for a long time, but Dawn wasn't fooled. "I don't know."

"Yes, you do. You're just scared you're out of practice when it comes to arguing with me."

He laughed quietly. "You're a terrible patient, Kitten. I thought you'd have grown out of that by now. Fine – I'll tell you what I think. I think Harry's got enough on his plate without worrying about all this prophecy bull. I don't want him to lose any more of his childhood to Voldemort."

"And I don't want him to lose his life to Voldemort, Sirius."

* * *

It was barely five minutes after Dawn declared their argument a stalemate and kicked Sirius out to get some rest that Harry began to stir in earnest. Dawn listened to him snort a couple of times; James used to do that right before he woke up, and looked down just as Harry's eyes were creaking open.

"Wha-?"

"Here," she slipped his glasses on.

Now that his vision was slightly less blurred, the teen began to figure out where he was and what was happening. He sat up, blushing, and shifted over a little on the bed.

"How did I get here?"

"Sirius," Dawn answered promptly, pretending not to notice how awkward he felt being so near her. If she'd stuck around, he wouldn't need to feel that way with her. "You were starting to look like a human pretzel, so he straightened you out."

He gave her an odd look, then all of a sudden remembered her wounds. "Are you all right?"

"Five by five," she shrugged. "Madam Pomfrey patched this accidental pincushion right up."

The odd look again.

"You talk funny."

"How do you think I feel? From where I'm standing, you all talk funny?"

A small smile cracked.

"Careful now, someone might see that and accuse you of not hating me so much today."

To Dawn's surprise, the smile didn't immediately disappear. "I don't hate you."

"I know you don't, kiddo. But you're mad as hell at me, and you've got good reason to be."

Harry shrugged. He had just got very interested in the way his fingers twisted themselves up in the corner of the bed sheet. "Sirius said you tried to get custody of me when my parents were killed, and the Ministry wouldn't let you."

"Yeah," Dawn said heavily. She deliberately didn't mention the role Dumbledore had played in denying her the right to raise Harry; Harry didn't need any more reason to be angry with his Headmaster at the moment.

"Well… Why didn't you tell me?"

"Would it have made a difference?"

"I… I don't know."

Dawn smiled half-heartedly. "See, I don't think it changes anything. When you're a kid, people tell you it doesn't matter if you win or lose as long as you try your best. And it's true, when it comes to Quidditch, but some things are far too important to lose. You would be one of them, Harry James Potter, and I lost you."

There were several minutes of silence where Harry pondered everything Dawn had said, and Dawn wondered if she should have said it in the first place. Slowly, around them, the muffled sounds of life stirring in the house began to emerge. Dawn and Harry didn't speak again until Sirius, showered and looking fresh except for the bags under his eyes, popped his head around the door.

"You're up, great. Molly wanted to know if she should fix you breakfast."

Dawn stretched a little. "I'll come down."

"Nice try, Kitten," Sirius smirked. "You're under bed arrest for the rest of the day. AND NO WHINING," he added sternly when Dawn began to whinge. "You're the one who offered yourself up as a Gora snack on a silver platter – you could've used your brains and just fed it Snivellus, but no, you had to be all chivalrous, didn't you?"

Harry looked away to hide his grin. Everything about Sirius changed when he was talking to Dawn. He got lighter, somehow, he slipped into a manner which was almost like hers, like they ended up on their own little frequency or something. He wondered if his own parents had been like Dawn and Sirius.

Dawn huffed.

"I think Molly's expecting you downstairs, too, Harry," Sirius added, and Harry slid off the bed and to his feet.

"Oh, fine! Is that the way it's gonna be? You're all just going to abandon me in my hour of need?"

"I was just stretching," Harry said, and promptly sat back down.

Dawn grinned at him. "Sirius, tell Molly to send Harry up some breakfast. He's having a morning off, too."

"Yes, ma'am," Sirius saluted, then left.

When the door clicked shut, Harry let out the snicker he'd been holding in.

"What?"

"Sirius starts talking like you do when he's around you."

"Be warned – I have that effect on people."

A slightly peaky-looking Remus brought their breakfast in, levitating the laden trays in front of him and waiting while Dawn conjured bed trays over her and Harry's laps. He sat with them while they ate and sipped a cup of tea, trying not to smile as Dawn and Harry traded their breakfast foods like chocolate frog cards. Harry got Dawn's sausages, Dawn got Harry's peanut butter toast, and they split the juice and coffee fifty-fifty.

After a while, Dawn looked around at Remus and grinned. "Hey, Rem, this is like when we first met!"

He laughed heartily. "Only it's the wrong side of the full moon for me, so I'm not stuck in bed."

Dawn looked at Harry. "You get the feeling that's a very ex-Professorish way of saying 'ha ha'?" she muttered.

"It did have a very 'sucked in' quality about it."

Both adults in the room burst out laughing. Harry was confused (it wasn't that funny a joke) until he ran over his words in his head. It sounded an awful lot like something Dawn herself would say.

"Bloody hell!"

Harry kept Dawn company for an hour after breakfast, until she swore on Marauders' Honour that she wouldn't be offended if he went to hang out with his friends (even though they were only decontaminating what felt like the fifty-seventh drawing room). She stayed on her own after that, reading through books of complex Wizard and Wicca spells, hoping to come across something besides Occlumency alone to help protect Harry from his connection with Voldemort.

She had a short reprieve from total mind-numbing boredom when Ginny and the twins brought in her lunch. They stayed for a while, challenging her to a rousing game of Exploding Snap that ended abruptly when Molly came charging in to chase the kids out with a wooden spoon.

Later in the afternoon, Hermione went to visit and covered for Dawn while she snuck out of bed to have a quick shower and stretched her legs on the third floor corridor while it was conveniently empty. Of course, Sirius and Remus knew exactly what was going on (for such a smart girl, Hermione couldn't come up with a decent cover story to save her life), but they let it go.

Dawn was grateful. That fifteen minutes she spent out of bed for the whole day was the only thing standing between her and total insanity. She sighed, left alone once more. Sirius hadn't visited her all day. She flopped back against the pillows, using one to muffle her frustrated scream.

* * *

"Don't tell me the great Sirius Black has lost his nerve?"

"Shut up, Moony," Sirius hissed, backing off several paces down the hall, away from Dawn's closed door so she wouldn't overhear.

It was nearing five in the afternoon, but he hadn't been in to see his ex-partner since before breakfast. For the whole day, Sirius had shied away from the room that was only a few doors down from his own. He and Dawn hadn't really spent any time alone together since she'd come back; they were "friends", but he didn't have the slightest clue in hell what that was supposed to mean.

He'd finally decided it would be rude of him to put off popping in to see how she was any longer and was so busy trying to work up the courage to knock that he hadn't heard Remus plodding softly up the stairs behind him.

"Just go and see her, Padfoot," the Lycanthrope advised, patting him on the shoulder. "You blew any pretence of not caring last night when a herd of trolls couldn't make you budge from her side, mate, there's no point trying to play it cool now."

Sirius frowned to himself. "Why do I always end up taking relationship advice from you?"

"Because I'm Professor Moony?"

"Because you're a bleeding know-it-all is more like it," Sirius shot out, then squared his shoulders. "Cover me, I'm going in."

He strode back to where he'd been standing for the past twenty minutes, outside Dawn's door, faltered for a moment, then knocked.

"Come in, Sirius."

His jaw dropped. Had she known all along? With much silent prodding from Remus, he went in.

"Took you long enough to come visit! I'm dying of boredom here," was all Remus heard before Sirius clicked the door shut behind him.

Sirius smiled at Dawn, trying not to blush at his own childishness for the whole day. What was he so afraid of? This was only Dawn, the woman who'd been his soul mate, looking soft and relaxed, sitting cross-legged on the bedspread in her red tights and slightly low-cut tank top…

He looked away,

"So you sound better," he commented.

The room was strewn with evidence of her returned health (and boredom). Parchments were scattered over the bedspread, books and even a few magazines littered the pond of threadbare carpet like lily pads.

"Yeah, I feel fine."

"Good."

"Thanks."

Sirius sat in the chair he'd conjured the night before. There was yet more silence in Dawn's day.

"So… Harry spent a fair while in here this morning. You guys must be getting on ok then."

Dawn shrugged. "Seems so. Wouldn't go as far to say he's warmed up to me yet, but he's definitely thawing out. I s'pose it's just a matter of time now, us getting to know each other."

"Uh-huh," Sirius grunted, trying to read the upside-down headlines of the closest trashy muggle magazine at his feet. He'd spend twenty minutes at the door worrying that the conversation would be awkward, but awkward would be an improvement on this. They were like separated parents, trying to keep it civil for the kids' sake… for Harry's sake. They could pretend when they were surrounded by distractions, decoys, but the cracks were there.

"We're not friends, are we?"

There – he'd said it. He couldn't actually look at her, but at least he'd said it.

An unnatural, throaty sound came from Dawn, like she was trying to scoff around a lump of peanut butter in her throat.

"We were never friends, Sirius. Never. I know we said we'd try, but…"

"We can't be friends," Sirius realised.

"I guess not," Dawn whispered.

They looked at each other, both sets of eyes guarded, a little frightened on the surface, but beneath the surface there was only begging and longing. Sirius slowly moved out of his chair, shifting until he was sitting on the mattress in front of Dawn. She took a shaky breath.

"So if we can't be friends, where does that leave us? Besides up poop creek without a paddle?"

"It leaves us with coffee," Sirius heard himself saying, though his brain seemed to have disconnected from him mouth.

"Coffee?" Dawn repeated, as if she barely dared to believe it. Coffee was a much, much better place to be than not fitting in each other's lives at all.

"Yeah," Sirius ran a finger down the side of her face, brushing her hair back behind her ear and smiling a little. "Maybe we should have coffee…"

She leaned closer, and with his brain still a bit disconnected from the rest of him Sirius didn't figure out what Dawn was doing until her lips touched his. It was strangely fitting to Sirius that this kiss was so much like their first kiss, back when they were just a couple of kids. Soft, mostly chaste, a promise of a world of feeling that was yet to be explored. It was over almost as soon as it had begun.

They both smiled, but when Dawn leaned forwards again, Sirius finally managed to get his brain reconnected and stopped her.

"Hey, you know the drill. You can't just have coffee and expect-"

"Yeah, yeah," she murmured, picking up on what he was referring to. "I'm the one who had that vision of Tara to begin with, remember? There's trust-rebuilding to be done on both sides, and I know we can't just skip it this time."

She leaned in so close that her lips were just barely grazing his when she moved them. "But having coffee later doesn't exactly do anything about the fact that I really want to kiss you right now."

Sirius closed his eyes; his brain had stopped working again, but he didn't care if it was a permanent affliction when he felt the gentle pressure return to his mouth.

A loud knock at the door tore them apart.

"How's the patient?" Madam Pomfrey asked, bustling into the room.

Dawn smiled sarcastically. "Running out of patience, actually."

**

* * *

**

**A.N. ** Another chapter at last! Hope you enjoyed it, even though everything is kind of restrained by the constraints and minefields of adulthood. But YAY – some progress for out characters (if not the story) at last! Next up maybe some fun with the twins, I've been dying for a prank war for ages! – Anoron XX00


	5. A Lead Role In A Cage

**Disclaimer:** Still own nothing. The Harry stuff is JK Rowling's. The Buffy stuff is Joss Whedon's. The line, 'a lead role in a cage' is from the Pink Floyd song, Wish You Were Here. I don't own that, either.

**A.N:** Didn't think I'd be able to get such a quick update in… Anyway, this chapter is the flipside of the one before i.e. the line "Did you exchange a walk-on part in the war / For a lead role in a cage. That's why it's all domestic-y and mostly fun. Anyway, I had fun writing this while I was supposed to be writing assignments, so I hope you have fun reading it! Will try and get some real action happening soon, I promise!

* * *

CHAPTER FOUR

**A Lead Role In A Cage**

The first thing Dawn did when Madam Pomfrey released her from her room arrest was to head straight into London to go shopping. She fell in love with a pair of knee-high leather boots and decided she just had to have them, but once she'd left the shoe store, firmly reminded herself that she was not shopping for her this time.

So she marched determinedly past two shopfront displays of really cute skirts that would be perfect with her new boots, and made a beeline fort the store she had come for. Two hours and several bags later, Dawn found a deserted corner of the mall and Disapparated, returning to Grimmauld place just in time for lunch. She took a seat next to Harry, grinning broadly when he turned to smile in greeting. It was such a little thing; a smile, but it thrilled her to the core that Harry had thawed enough towards her to say "hey" when she walked in.

"Howzit goin', Harry?"

"Good. How are you?"

"Fine. Listen, after lunch, if you could stop by my room I've got something to show you."

"Sure."

Harry turned back to his Quidditch conversation with Ginny, and Dawn shifted around so she was facing the table. Sirius was sitting across from her. She smiled demurely, feeling the heat creeping up her cheeks when he smiled back. They hadn't had any time alone since Madam Pomfrey had interrupted their moment the previous evening, but the promise of a new start hung almost tangibly in the air between them.

"Hi."

"Hi."

There wasn't time for more, all of a sudden there were platters of sandwiches and pitchers of water and pumpkin juice flying around the table and any chance of private conversation was swamped into general chatter.

"Moony, can you pass one of those rolls?" Sirius called down the table.

"Sure," Remus called back, beginning to levitate a roll in Sirius' direction. "Kitten, you want one?"

"No, thanks," Dawn laughed. Her plate was already full. "Not even going to try to keep up with Padfoot!"

None of the Marauders noticed the gleeful looks passing between Fred and George during the exchange, as the trio unconsciously slipped into their nicknames. The rest of the meal passed fairly peacefully, apart from Ron (presumably) accidentally kicking Crookshanks under the table; the cat screeched and shot off under the dresser, Hermione screeched at Ron twice as loud and ten times as long, and everyone's appetite was effectively ruined.

While their mother was safely occupied stacking dishes, George produced a box of chocolates and passed them around. He made sure they went to the Marauders first, so that they wouldn't see the others, who knew better, decline the offer.

There were three loud BANGS that made Molly drop a plate that went smashing into the sink, and three large, bright canaries stood out in stark relief against the dark stone and wood of the kitchen. There was a roar of laughter echoing around the room, which Remus, Sirius and Dawn cheerfully joined in once they had malted.

"That was completely disrespectful!" Molly screamed at her sons. "Apologise at once!"

"Sorry guys," Fred said, eyes sparkling.

"No worries," Sirius grinned.

"It's fine," Remus assured Molly. "Just a bit of harmless fun, really."

"Yeah," George grinned, slipping the Canary Creams into his back pocket. "We just wanted to see if the legendary Marauders still had it. What do you think, Fred?"

"Ooh, I think they're slipping a bit in their old age."

Dawn raised her eyebrows at this, but only smiled blandly. She could tell that Remus and Sirius were taking the unspoken challenge in the same manner she was, and the three of them were clearly thinking the exact same thing: PRANK WAR.

"Hmm," she said mildly. "Can't say we've ever done canaries before, have we, guys? Our bit was more getting things to explode… Harry, have you got a sec now?"

"Huh? Oh, sure."

He followed her up to her room, and caught sight of several large bags laying on the dresser. He looked at them curiously; all except one were from a menswear store. Dawn ushered him to a seat at the foot of the bed before she brought the bags over.

"Dawn, what's all this?"

"Well, I know you haven't really got anything to wear to this hearing of yours."

"Oh."

Dawn's injury had taken his mind off it briefly, but not a day went by that Harry didn't find the fear of what would happen on August 12th eating away at his stomach like acid. What would he do if he couldn't go back to Hogwarts? Then he took another look at Dawn's shopping. There were at least half a dozen bags there, way too much for one outfit.

"But why all this? It's way too much."

"No, it's not," Dawn said cheerfully. "I figured a new wardrobe was he least I could do. So if you want, you can just look through them whenever, and keep anything you like. And if you don't like anything, that's ok. I could get you something else to wear."

Harry didn't hesitate. He knew Dawn had played it cool and told him to look at the clothes whenever he wanted, but he couldn't wait. Apart from his school stuff, he'd never, ever had brand new clothes that were just for him. He reached into bag after bag, eagerly pulling out trousers, jeans, shorts, t-shirts, sweaters and a couple of more formal button-down shirts until Dawn's bedspread was no longer visible under it all.

"Wow… Thanks, Dawn."

He looked like he wasn't sure if he should hug her or not. Dawn made herself smile and squeezed his hand briefly.

"You're welcome, Harry. There is one more thing I wanted to ask you, though," she said, turning her attention to folding his new clothes to put back into the bags. "I was wondering… It's only a couple of days until your hearing… I thought maybe you'd like some moral support? I mean, I know you'd want Padfoot with you more than me, I know it's not the same, but I don't think Dumbledore would let him go to the Ministry of all places… Too many Death Eaters running around… But, if you want, maybe I could come?"

Harry blinked, trawling through the babble to get to her point. Finally, a slow smile spread across his face.

"Sure."

* * *

"So… how 'bout that cup of coffee?"

Dawn smiled. She and Sirius had finally found a moment for alone-time in one of the drawing rooms that had already been decontaminated. She'd been quietly poking around, looking at the few books left on the small bookshelf when Sirius slipped into the room, his wand guiding a tray with two steaming cups.

"Sure." She accepted her cup and they each settled into one of the armchairs.

There was a beat before Sirius made a stab at conversation.

"So how are we going to pay the twins back for that canary stunt?"

Dawn giggled. "I've been wondering how many hours it would take you to accept the challenge."

"Well it's a matter of Marauders' Honour now, innit? We should put the little buggers in their place right away, show 'em how it's really done," he said, taking a sip of his coffee.

"Not necessarily," Dawn countered, a long-lost devious spark returning to her eyes. "From what Hermione told me, Canary Creams are actually pretty old hat for those guys. We don't want to show all our cards too early or we'll have nothing up our sleeve when they hit back."

"Which they will, if they're even remotely like us," Sirius interjected, nodding.

"Exactly. So I say we start with something just as basic and force them to step it up a notch, if they dare."

There were the beginning sparks of mischief in Sirius' eyes, too, now. "What do you have in mind?"

She grinned broadly. "I love the smell of worm bile in the morning!" she quipped.

"You are so hot when you're being devious," Sirius blurted before he could stop himself.

Dawn laughed and looked away, embarrassed. "Geez, Padfoot, what a line. Bet you used that on all the Dementors."

Sirius chuckled. "Nah, I never bothered to bring my A-game for them – they only wanted me for my soul."

They fell into comfortable silence for a few moments, sipping their drinks and enjoying the company. Then Sirius cleared his throat.

"Can I ask you something, Kitten?"

"Just did."

"Touché."

"Well?"

"I was just wondering if… While I was in Azkaban… Was there anyone else?" He quickly took a slug of hot coffee, but then found he had issues swallowing.

Dawn's hand shook ever so slightly as she set her cup on the coffee table between them. "Sirius, look at me. Look at me. No. There was never anyone else, ok. I mean, over the years I went on a couple of dates, but… I don't know. It just felt wrong, you know what I mean?"

Sirius swallowed the coffee with a huge gulp. He smiled, not caring how obviously his relief was showing. It had been something that had plagued him since he could remember; in the darkest nights at Azkaban, when the Dementors got too close and he couldn't summon the strength to transform, his mind would be bombarded with thoughts of Dawn in another man's arms, being another man's wife, bearing another man's children.

At the thought of children, Sirius' smile turned bitter; thoughts of the baby that should have been his and Dawn's (a little girl, Dawn had been certain, said she could just feel it) flooded to the forefront of his mind.

* * *

_Across the road from Sirius and Dawn's flat was a little park, the perfect space for a late Summer barbeque. They had decided to celebrate Dawn's nineteenth birthday there; the Marauders, Lily and Dad and Mom Potter had gathered there for a lazy Sunday afternoon, James and Sirius had cooked enough steak to feed an army, although somehow the boys had managed to get it all down, while Dawn and Lily had made sure that every sort of salad imaginable had been added to the picnic table._

_Lunch had just finished, Dawn had popped back across the road to grab the desserts of apple pie, fruit salad, and strawberries and cream from the fridge while the boys tossed a Quaffle around and Lily and Mom Potter fed the leftover rolls to the ducks in the small pond._

_She had just piled everything onto a tray when the door opened and closed behind her, steps crossed the kitchen towards her and the tray was lifted smartly out of her hands._

_"You shouldn't be lifting things," Sirius admonished. "Use your wand."_

_"As if I could've used magic carrying everything outside where the Muggles could see," Dawn rolled her eyes. "Besides, those two extra pounds were a real strain. I'm sure I could've done some real damage with that tray!"_

_"Kitten…" Sirius began in a warning tone, but was cut off by the door opening and closing for a second time._

_"Hey, Dad," Dawn smiled brightly._

_"Hi, sweetheart," Harold grinned. It hadn't even been four whole years since Dawn had come into his life, but having a daughter seemed almost as natural to Harold as having a son._

_"We're just on our way back out, Mr P," Sirius said, shifting the tray so it rested more comfortably in his hands._

_"Actually, that can wait for a moment. I want to talk to you two about something."_

_Sirius put the tray back on the bench, then leaned against the counter. Dawn leaned against him, facing her father, and when Sirius' hand absently began stroking her tummy her own hand came up to cover it. They waited expectantly for Harold to speak._

_"Now I know you both have said that you don't want any help paying for your wedding, that you want to save up and do it yourself, and Cecilia and I have respected that. But you've been out of school and in the Auror training program for a year now, and we really would love to see the two of you married already. You're a second son anyway, Sirius. Let's make it official. Let us help you with the wedding."_

_Dawn twisted her head slightly to share a look with Sirius. She knew he was touched by what Harold had said, but she also knew his pride made it difficult for him to accept help from her foster parents now that he was an adult. He loved and appreciated the Potters more than anything for the way they had always been there for him, and especially for the way they had unconditionally opened their home and hearts to him when he'd left his own family at sixteen, but Dawn knew he couldn't bring himself to take anything more from the family who had already given him more love and support than he'd ever known from the Blacks._

_"Thanks, Daddy," Dawn whispered. "But things are sort of different for us now. See, we saved enough money, and we were going to set a date as soon as Lily and James had their wedding, but…"_

_Harold smiled. "That's great honey." Then he thought over her words. "Hang on, what do you mean 'were going to'?"_

_Sirius tried not to grin too widely. "It's just that we'll be needing the money for something more important now."_

_"Yeah, we're going to need a bigger house, for one thing," Dawn quipped, squeezing Sirius' hand._

_They could practically hear the 'thunk' as everything dropped into place for Harold. The two sets of hands wrapped protectively around Dawn's stomach, that Dawn had been drinking only orange juice while everyone else sampled the beer and wine, the way Sirius had dropped everything to run in and help Dawn carry things she could easily manage on her own, and the fact that Dawn had volunteered for desk duty at work for three weeks straight (a first for a trainee Auror in the history of trainee Aurors)._

_"You're pregnant!"_

_"Well we were saving the announcement for after dessert, but-"_

_Dawn was cut off as Harold threw his arms around her and Sirius together and squeezed. He was laughing, he released them only to pull Dawn away and swing her in a circle, kissing her cheek, then shook Sirius' hand so hard he left red marks._

_"Congratulations!"_

_"Thanks, Mr. P," Sirius grinned. He'd never lost the inclination to use the title he'd been accustomed to since boyhood, even though on his seventeenth birthday Harold had told him in no uncertain terms that he was of age now, and was free to call the Potters Harold and Cecilia if he so chose._

_"Well let's get this show on the road, since there's such an important announcement to make!"_

_Harold sauntered out the door, the limp he'd picked up in a particularly vicious battle a few months earlier barely noticeable. Dawn turned to Sirius for a quick, giddy kiss, before Sirius picked up the tray and headed back to the others._

* * *

"Sirius? Are you ok?"

Sirius pulled himself out of memories to find Dawn staring at him in concern. Memories like that, of the good times, when they believed as long as they all stuck together Voldemort couldn't really touch them, hadn't come to him so much in Azkaban. But now they weren't a whole lot of comfort to him either; he already knew how badly things would go for them all, he knew exactly how much they were all going to lose.

"Yeah," he whispered; his voice had become a little rough. "I was just thinking about… about the baby."

"Oh."

He could see it hurt her just as much as it hurt him to think about. She was looking down, talking to the hands that had clenched in her lap.

"Sometimes I wonder how different things would have been… I try and picture what all our lives would've been like if I hadn't…" she looked up at him, and there was a glossy sheen over the blue of her eyes. "I think a part of me never really understood why you didn't blame me for what happened."

Sirius automatically reached across the coffee table and seized one of Dawn's hands. "Dawn, how many times do I have to say it? It wasn't your fault. It was just a horrible accident. There was nothing you could have done."

Dawn nodded, but Sirius did not let go of her hand. After a few moments of drawing comfort from each other, Dawn let out a hollow laugh.

"How did we get from planning pranks to this? We must be getting old, James would be horrified!"

They forgot they were still holding hands until the door swung open and they jumped, pulling apart and looking at each other in mild shock. It was only Remus, cup of tea in hand. Somewhere, vaguely beyond him, came the sound of yelling until he shut the door, effectively blocking it out.

"I think Molly found the rest of the twins' Extendable Ears," he groaned, taking the last armchair in the room. "And speaking of the twins…"

Remus finally looked up and realised that Sirius' jaw was slightly clenched, and Dawn's eyes were a little glossy. "I'm sorry, am I interrupting?"

"No," Dawn said quickly. Too quickly. "We were just reminiscing, Rem." Her hand rubbed absently at her flat stomach.

Remus sipped his tea, studying them shrewdly over the rim of the cup. Sirius shook his head at his friend. The moment was over.

"What were you saying about Fred and George, Moony?"

Remus smiled apologetically. "I was going to ask if either of you had come up with a plan for counter-offensive, yet."

"As a matter of fact, we have," Dawn grinned, and the three of them leaned in conspiritually.

* * *

Two packages arrived in the morning, one each for Fred and George. Both redheads glanced suspiciously along the breakfast table at the Marauders, but Remus was idly reading the paper, Dawn was buttering a piece of toast and Sirius was staring blearily into a mug of tea and none of the trio gave the remotest hint of suspicion. It occurred to George that they must have had years of practice at this, but neither of them recognised the post owls that had delivered the boxes, and Fred pointed out that the return address was marked to Lee Jordan.

Dawn heard the twins muttering about the authenticity of the return address and made a mental note to thank her informant later. The boys were tearing into the packages.

BANG!

When the smoke cleared, and the alarmed shouting died down, Fred and George sat frozen like statues; partly stunned, and partly afraid to move in case they got somehow even more covered in whatever the disgusting, greyish-brown, vomit-looking substance that had exploded in their faces.

"Surprise," the Marauders quipped.

The others were inching their chairs away from the mess, but Hermione leaned in gingerly, sniffing dubiously at the substance covering the twins.

"Is that worm bile?" she asked, nose wrinkling.

"Correct again, Hermione," Remus chuckled.

"Our world famous –"

" – Slytherin famous –" Sirius interjected.

" – Slytherin famous Worm Bile Surprise, to be precise," Dawn grinned. "Oh, and guys? You really wanna get rid of it before it sets."

Waves of chuckles were spreading around the table and even Molly couldn't keep a straight face. Fred and George couldn't see well enough to cast effective cleaning charms, so they had to grope for their napkins until they were able to clear enough of the goo out of their eyes to stumble upstairs to their bathroom.

As soon as he reached the door, Fred turned back to look at the pranksters. The smile on his face was good-natured, but the glint in what little of his eyes they could see was dangerous.

"Of course, you realise, this means war."

Dawn blew him a kiss.

They spent the day cleaning out a large formal dining room on the second floor. At Harry's request, they recounted the story of how they had come to create the Worm Bile Surprise in the first place. The kids listened raptly to Sirius' spirited retelling of the day in fifth year when Dawn had thrown worm bile at Bellatrix Lestrange's (even though she was still a Black then, Sirius really didn't care to admit it) head, and the riot that had ensued.

Then, spurred on by Harry's continual requests to hear more (Merlin, but wasn't that boy just starved for every little scrap about his parents he could get his hands on?), they went on to reminisce about some of the other pranks they had played back in their Hogwarts days. They stuck to the ones they knew they would never repeat, like flooding the Great Hall as a pond for multicoloured ducks and having all the Ravenclaws sealed in their Common Room for a whole morning, so that the twins wouldn't be likely to guess what they had in store for them next.

Some time after lunch, Tonks joined them, citing absolute, mind-numbing boredom on her day off as an excuse to visit. She helped Dawn polish the table, because the others were worried that she would fall off her ladder if they let her up to help Sirius clean the chandelier. Remus disappeared a short while later, muttering to Dawn that he had a meeting with Dumbledore on his way out.

"So you seriously had nothing better to do today?" Dawn asked as the table slowly revealed its original colour underneath their cloths.

"Nothing," Tonks sighed dramatically, flicking a long, blue braid over her shoulder. "If I go home, my mother will start in on setting me up on a blind date again, like I'm fool enough to fall for that again. And being an Auror eight days a week doesn't really leave time for mates."

"Don't I remember it," Dawn grunted, scrubbing at a particularly stubborn mark on the table. If she hadn't had Lily and the boys with her, sometimes she doubted she'd ever see her friends.

"So it's not like I get to go clubbing, or even have girls nights or anything," the young witch finished whining.

"Me either," Dawn moaned. She'd grown out of clubbing by now, but Dawn sorely missed the friendship and camaraderie that Tonks herself was craving. Suddenly, inspiration struck and she smiled at the younger woman. "Tell you what – I'm over the clubbing thing myself, but you never get too old for a girls night."

"Huh?" Tonks looked up.

"Why don't we have ourselves a girls night tonight?"

Tonks smiled cautiously, but looked around at the kids who were washing the chairs down at the far end of the room. "What, here? With all the kids? You really think Molly would approve?"

Dawn snorted. "Are we adults or not? Anyway, we can just hang out in my room after they've all gone to bed. Have a few drinks, a little music, I've got some good facials and masks…"

"I'm in," Tonks grinned.

Sirius, still up the ladder and waging war on the chandelier that had probably not been attended to since his mother's death, strained his ears in vain trying to decipher what the two women below him were whispering about. There were cheeky grins on both women's faces as they finished their work.

"What are you two up to?" he called down the ladder, making Fred and George's heads whip about in suspicion.

"Nothing you need to know about," they called back sweetly.

He continued to watch them throughout the rest of the afternoon and evening. Tonks stayed for dinner, all the girls in the house congregating at one end of the table, including Molly, babbling and giggling together in a way that none of the men could ever quite fathom.

They remained in the kitchen long after the meal was over, the boys talking Quidditch and pranks, the men talking about Voldemort and the Ministry, and the ladies still talking about Merlin only knew what, but it was obviously funny because they still hadn't stopped all that bloody giggling. Finally, Molly broke off reminiscing about a love potion she had once brewed (that Hermione and Ginny already seemed to have heard about) and remembered to pack all the kids off to bed. It was barely fifteen minutes later when Dawn and Tonks practically skipped out of the room and Sirius had nothing to look at as a distraction from the conversation as Dawn disappeared from view.

It was nearing one in the morning when Sirius, Arthur and Remus finally broke apart their little conference to head up to bed. All was silent as they moved towards the separate wings of the house which held their rooms, but as Sirius turned down the lonely corridor that led to his and Dawn's rooms the silence was shattered in a blast of loud music and even louder laughter.

"What the hell?" Sirius muttered.

They'd put up Silencing Charms to trap the noise in their own corridor, but Sirius' room wasn't so lucky. The walls were paper thin between the two rooms and he could hear every word the women were saying over the pulsing beat of the music. Unfortunately, it appeared that they were a few bottles of wine into the evening, so not much of the gabble was intelligible anymore.

Sirius groaned and hoped they'd tire out soon as he headed into his bathroom for a shower. Even turning the water on full force couldn't drown out Dawn's wild laughter. It was just like the sleepovers she used to have with Lily in the summers back at Godric's Hollows, only with less alcohol. And without James spending sleepless nights practically tethering himself to his bed to keep his promise that he would, under no circumstances short of a Death Eater raid, set foot in Dawn's room while Lily was over. Sirius smiled to himself as he turned off the water and reached for his towel. If nothing else, at least it was good to hear Dawn sounding as carefree as she had when they were kids.

The feeling didn't last. By two thirty, Sirius had well and truly had enough. He rolled out of bed, threw on a Gryffindor red shirt over his grey track pants, and stomped to the room next door.

He threw Dawn's door open and took a step back at the extra loud blast of music hit him in full force.

"Wotcher, Sirius," Tonks screamed.

Sirius waved his wand and the music stopped abruptly. The two women were sprawled on the threadbare carpet at the foot of Dawn's bed, discarded wine bottles adding to the mess of beauty products and CD cases littering the floor around them. There were two rather large, almost empty wineglasses resting on a discarded _Daily Prophet_.

"What's up?" Dawn giggled. Her face was incredibly pink.

"What's up?" Sirius fought not to growl. "Bloody hell, Kitten, it's TWO THIRTY in the morning! I haven't seen you this drunk since that Quidditch Cup after party in fifth year. What the hell have you two been doing in here all night?"

"Shh," Dawn slurred. "Stop yelling, Siri. You'll wake everyone up."

Sirius choked on the string of swear words that were bubbling up out of him. He knew he would be laughing about all this in the morning, but not if he didn't get a decent night's sleep first. He gave a tense smile.

"You're right. So maybe it's time for you two to break up the party and get some sleep, yeah? Tonks, you're in no state to be Apparating right now, so why don't you sleep in my room?"

Dawn and Tonks pouted at each other. "But we haven't even got to the pillow fight yet!"

"Well, there's always next time," Sirius reasoned, trying to keep the exasperation out of his voice. "Say goodnight, Tonks."

He lifted Tonks up by her underarms and steered her out of Dawn's room and into his own. He left her sitting on the side of the bed, dimming the lamp and ordering her to get some sleep before shutting the door and heading back into Dawn's room.

Dawn had flopped back against the floor and was staring at the greying and peeling ceiling, her long, bare legs stretched out in front of her. She had already been dressed in her gold boxers and little crimson shirt when Sirius had crashed the party, which Sirius was thankful for, as it made his task of pouring her into bed just that little bit easier. All the energy seemed to have gone from her body now that Sirius had removed her partner in crime, she barely blinked when he gently suggested she crawl into bed.

It was nearly three AM by this stage, Sirius didn't have the energy to argue so he scooped her up of the floor and deposited her in the bed before turning the lights out and crawling in beside her. When she felt the mattress dip next to her, Dawn finally stirred a little.

"What're ya doin'?" she mumbled blearily.

"Trying to sleep, Dawn. You might like to give it a go yourself before morning hits."

"But why're ya here?"

Sirius sighed. "Because my dear second cousin is in my room at the moment. So I'm just going to lay here next to you, and try to sleep, and pray to Merlin that Tonks doesn't paint my room with the contents of her stomach between now and morning. Which actually isn't very far away."

"M'kay," Dawn breathed, and rolled to face Sirius, throwing her arm over his torso and snuggling her face into his shoulder. Within minutes, she was snoring slightly and drooling on his shirt.

"Now I just need to pray you don't paint _me_ with the contents of _your_i stomach," Sirius muttered, before kissing the top of Dawn's head and finally settling into sleep himself.

* * *

It was shortly after seven thirty that Remus headed up to Sirius' room to wake him for the day. Sirius had always been allergic to the prospect of an alarm clock, so ever since they had been using Grimmauld Place as Headquarters it had fallen to Remus to make sure Sirius was alive and functional in time for breakfast. It was just like their Hogwarts days, really.

He was whistling a tune as he knocked on the door. The only response was a sluggish moan from the other side which made Remus chuckle. That was a fairly usual first response from Sirius.

He pushed open the door and had taken four steps in when he froze in horror at the sight which greeted him. It sure as hell wasn't Sirius sprawled face-down across the bed with most of the covers on the floor, dressed in nothing more than a pair of black knickers and matching bra, with long strands of sickly green hair spilling over the pillows.

He couldn't stop staring. One part of Remus' mind knew he should be showing some discretion and heading for the door, but there were a lot of other parts of his mind that were hollering all sorts of things at him, making the rational part extremely difficult to hear. Thoughts about what a beautiful young woman Nymphadora Tonks had become, when she was letting herself be as she was naturally supposed to be without morphing her face beyond recognition. And what a lean, graceful looking body she had when she wasn't tripping over her own two feet.

And what the hell was she doing in Sirius Black's bed in her knickers, anyway?

It was this thought that finally made Remus' mind quiet again. Tonks was starting to stir, with a loud moan of pain, she began to roll onto her back. Remus blinked. She had a pierced bellybutton. He smacked a hand to his forehead and bolted from the room, shutting the door firmly behind him and leaning against it.

What the hell was going on here? And where was Sirius, anyway?

Before he knew what he was doing, he was moving to the next door down. Maybe he should get Dawn down to the kitchen before she came across the other woman. He knocked once, softly, and entered. For the second time that morning, he froze.

It wasn't Dawn in Dawn's bed. It was Sirius, stretched out against the pillows with what looked to be a considerable drool patch on one shoulder of his shirt. Through his drowsiness, there was a vaguely amused air about him.

"Morning, Moony."

"Padfoot…" Remus looked around. "What the hell's going on? Where's Dawn?"

The answer came in the form of a retching sound from the other side of the closed bathroom door. Sirius chuckled.

"The girls had a bit of a wild night last night. Didn't think Tonks would survive Apparating home without splinching herself, and I didn't think I would survive Andromeda finding out it was because of a drinking session at my place."

"Oh," Remus said, and he inexplicably felt some sense of relief.

Through the thin walls, they heard the sounds of retching coming from Sirius' bathroom, too. Remus raised his eyebrows.

"Was it really that bad?"

"Well I finally decided I'd had enough of listening to the constant screaming at about half past two, and then it took nearly another half hour until I'd finally got them to shut the hell up and go to bed," Sirius yawned.

Remus looked around at the mess at his feet. "Did they really drink all this?"

"Yep. I reckon they could've drunk me and Prongs under the table on Prongs' bucks night. And that's saying something."

Remus shuddered to the sound of more retching. Sirius finally rolled out of bed.

"I think I'd better go make sure she's still alive. You might want to do the same for Tonks," Sirius added, throwing a wink that Remus didn't understand over his shoulder as he slipped into the bathroom.

Both Dawn and Tonks were incredibly subdued at the breakfast table. Tonks bravely choked down some bacon and eggs and weak tea, while Dawn didn't venture further than a glass of water. Remus and Sirius seemed to find the whole affair incredibly amusing, although Remus didn't seem to be able to look Tonks in the eye. Sirius kept wafting his hash browns under Dawn's nose, sniggering as her cheeks turned the same delicate shade of seasick green as Tonks' hair.

Tonks put down her knife and fork and let her head fall forwards into her hands. "Remus, will you make me a Hangover Cure Potion?" she wheedled.

"No, I don't think I will," Remus grinned, as Dawn's head had lifted hopefully at the request. "You brought this on yourself, ladies."

Tonks whimpered pathetically.

"That doesn't work with me, Nymphadora," Remus sang, his eyes fixing on her forehead, but not quite meeting her eyes.

"Don't call me Nymphadora," Tonks snapped, the roots of her hair tinging a little red in her anger. The effect of red and sickly green made her look like a washed-out Christmas tree. "Stupid bloody mother, taste in her butt-hole."

"I like Andromeda," Dawn whined weakly. "'Sides, could be worse. My Mum called my older sister Buffy!"

Tonks snorted, then laid her head on the table. Sirius leaned over and cheerfully picked the stray strands of hair out of the bacon grease and egg yolk left on her plate.

Down the other end of the table, Harry leaned in to speak to his friends. "What's wrong with those two?"

Hermione rolled her eyes as if it was obvious, clicking her tongue in slight disapproval before she went back to her book. The twins snickered. This was going to make their counterattack so much simpler. And so much funnier.

"Called a hangover, mate," George whispered in Harry's ear.

Harry wasn't quite sure how it had happened, but this morning he had found himself sandwiched in between Fred and George. Fred discreetly nudged his shoulder.

"So, Harry, how do you feel about Dawn? Really?"

Harry choked on his juice. "What?"

"Well, it must be hard, having her waltz back into your life after all this time as if nothing has happened."

"Not to mention that since she's been around, there's been a lot less of Sirius' attention to go around," George threw in.

Harry shifted. "Is there any particular reason you're picking at these scabs?"

Identical smirks spread across identical faces. "Wouldn't you love just a little bit of payback?"

"Just some harmless, fun revenge?"

Harry bit his lip. "Like what?"

After breakfast, while Dawn was trying to make her legs drag her back to bed to fall into a nice, painless coma away from Sirius and Remus' jokes and Molly's disapproving frown, Harry sidled up to her. Her head was pounding too much to allow room for suspicion as he hooked his arm through hers and helped her up the basement steps.

"Morning, Dawn," he said as gently as he could.

"Hey Harry," she murmured, smiling weakly as they reached the top of the stairs. Harry led her down the hallway, but did not turn to head upstairs towards Dawn's room.

"Harry, what?" was all Dawn managed before the twins popped up in front of her, each grabbing one of her wrists.

They shoved her up against the wall and shackled her firmly there. She opened her mouth to scream, but one of the twins (she could never tell them apart even on a good day) clamped a fairly large hand over her mouth.

"Look around you, Kitten," he smirked at the use of the nickname. "Screaming would probably leave you a little worse for wear at the moment – so maybe you should just hang here and enjoy the quiet for a while."

Dawn turned her head (slowly, because sudden movements made her head spin) and looked up. She was right next to the covered portrait of Mrs Black, and one wrong move would result in ear-splitting shrieks that would likely make her head explode. She whimpered.

The twins and Harry were backing away rapidly, heading towards the stairs to make a clean getaway. Harry caught Dawn's eye one last time before he turned to flee; there was a look of complete betrayal in the depths of blue.

"Traitor," she whimpered.

Harry shrugged, mouthed 'payback', grinned in a way that was far too like James, and disappeared. Dawn whimpered again. Aside from the hangover which was slowly killing her from within, she couldn't help but be reminded of being attacked by Lucius Malfoy in fifth year, when he'd shackled her to a wall. That one memory alone made her want to forget all reason and scream for help.

It was twenty minutes before someone found her there. Ginny, coming up the stairs ahead of Ron, stopped dead in her tracks at the sight of Dawn and clapped a hand over her mouth. Ron crashed right into the back of her. Dawn couldn't tell if it was shock, or if she was just trying to hold back laughter, but she didn't care as long as someone got her out of this mess.

Ginny called softly down to the kitchen for Sirius, who bounded upstairs, only to stop dead in his tracks just as Ginny had done seconds before. A part of him wanted to laugh, but deep in his stomach he felt an uneasy rumble; Dawn had a distinct fear of being bound at the wrists ever since fifth year, and Sirius was not at all comforted by the thought, either. He rushed forwards, and with a silent tap of his wand on each cuff, freed Dawn.

She stumbled forwards, into his arms. He could feel that she was shaking ever so slightly.

"All right, Kitten?"

"Memories," she whispered hoarsely. "I'm going to kill those little bastards. Harry, too."

* * *

They left Dawn alone throughout the rest of the day. Sirius made sure Tonks was well enough to Apparate home (she had to work that evening), and checked on Dawn at lunchtime, but she was out cold and he thought it best to leave her that way for a while. He spent his afternoon with Harry, trying to get some quality time in with his Godson by helping him with the last of his homework assignments, even though Harry frequently complained that until his hearing was over, they couldn't be sure this wasn't a complete waste of time.

Then Sirius uttered the statement which sealed his fate; he was old. "Learning is never a waste of time, Harry."

Harry opened his mouth to soundly ridicule his Godfather, but did not get the chance.

"What was that?" he frowned as a loud crash echoed down to the kitchen. He followed Sirius, who was already moving through the house, trying to locate the source of the disturbance.

His face nearly smacked into his Godfather's back when Sirius stopped dead in his tracks upon reaching the entrance hall of the house. Stepping out from behind Sirius to see, Harry's jaw dropped open in shock. Clearly Dawn felt better. Sirius suspected Remus must have caved in and brewed her that Hangover Cure Potion, after all.

Ron, Fred and George were snickering loudly and calling out words of encouragement, while Hermione and Ginny had retreated a safe distance from the scene, half way up the stairs. The five of them were avidly watching the battle between woman and shrieking portrait as Dawn, her long hair swept up in a messy bun, attacked the portrait of Mrs Black with ferocity.

"**YOU STOP THAT THIS INSTANT, FILTHY MUDBLOOD! THIS IS THE HOME OF MY FATHERS, HOW DARE YOU BESMIRCH THEIR SACRED HALLS, YOU AND THAT GOOD-FOR-NOTHING SHAME OF MY FLESH-**" the portrait raged.

"Do you want a moustache?" Dawn roared back, her temper well and truly lost.

Harry raised his eyebrows in silent question to his Godfather, but Sirius did not see the gesture. His arms folded loosely across his chest, he was lounging against the door frame, an amused smirk gracing his lips and a wolfish glint in his eyes as they followed the tensed curves of Dawn's body.

After a moment of shock following Dawn's outburst that had the twins rolling on the floor with laughter, Mrs Black's abusive wailings renewed with double the effort. Dawn's eyes narrowed. She whipped her wand out of her waistband and hit the portrait with a Silencing spell. The painted mouth still moved on the indignant face, opening and closing like a fish out of water, but sounds no longer came from the portrait. Dawn shifted something in her grip, and after a few minutes of hard work, accentuated by Dawn's light grunts, the offending portrait was finally torn away from the wall.

As it crashed to the floor, all those watching burst into riotous applause, prompting Dawn to take a bow. She wiped her free hand over her sweaty face and turned to wink at Sirius, who was grinning like there was no tomorrow.

"How did you do that?" Harry asked, awed by the display. Even Hermione and Ginny had left the safety of the stairs to closer inspect Dawn's victory.

Dawn lifted the piece of shaped metal in her hand for all to see. "It's this really fantastic Muggle tool called a crowbar," she grinned.

"Could we have a look at that, Dawn?" George asked, while Fred reached a hand towards the potential weapon. Dawn whipped it out of his reach just as Molly and Remus came down the hallway to investigate the racket.

"Do I look stupid to you?" she snorted.

At that moment, the wall behind Dawn began to splinter with a series of cracks like gunshots. Her eyebrows hit her hairline and she froze in disbelief, listening as the wall she'd just torn the portrait from practically crumbled to the ground.

She winced as the last chunks of plaster hit the floor behind her. "Oops."

The hysteria spread like a domino effect, beginning with both Fred and George immediately doubling over with laughter. Ron sat down heavily on the floor, slapping at his knees and Harry had tears of mirth rolling down his cheeks. Ginny's face had gone as red as her hair, Hermione had a hand clapped over her mouth, even Molly and Remus could not even try to keep straight faces.

Sirius clutched the door frame he'd been leaning against for support, sure he'd hit the floor just like Ron had any moment now. Oh, but it was worth it to just to see Dawn standing there looking so contrite, a light smattering of dust and powder smudging one cheek adorably.

"Well done, Kitten," he managed as Dawn succumbed to the contagious fit of the giggles going around the room.

She shrugged. "How was I to know that was a load-bearing portrait?"

Molly, the first to recover, moved over to Dawn's side as the woman turned to inspect the damage she'd caused to the wall. "No harm done, dear," she assured Dawn, wand in hand and eyes still twinkling with amusement.

"_Reparo_" she flicked her wrist and the wall suddenly recomposed itself.

"Shame, that," Ron commented from his position on the floor. "Would've made a great conversation piece, that rubble would."

Several people snorted and Remus stepped up to Dawn, grinning broadly as he relieved her of her crowbar. "Maybe I should take this, Dawnie."

Harry and Sirius snickered at Dawn's childish pout. Instantly, she brightened up again, giving the portrait a hard tap with her foot. "So what should we do with that? I mean, we can't really put it out with the rest of the trash."

"I'll take it down to the basement before Kreacher shows his ugly little head," Sirius said, and Hermione tutted audibly at his insult of the House-Elf. "If he spots it, he'll go mental."

As Sirius hefted the portrait, Dawn's silencing charm wore off, and Mrs Black began screaming loud enough to shatter glass. But Sirius just grinned at her. "Scream all you like, Mum," he told her. "There's not a damn thing you can do about it now."

Dawn shook her head in mock disapproval. "Bested by a Mudblood," she quipped. "How embarrassing, what would your fathers say?"

Even the indignant screeching of Mrs Black could not drown out the sounds of Sirius' laughter as he dragged his mother's portrait away to the basement. Dawn whipped around to Harry and the twins with a smirk.

"And if I were you three, I'd start sleeping with two eyes open!"

"I love a challenge," George grinned.

However, after a Marauder conference that evening, they all decided that Fred and George could wait for their punishment – they would make the stress of waiting part of the prank. Harry, on the other hand…

The poor boy woke the next morning and rolled over sleepily. His hand hit something solid. His eyes fluttered blearily open. He was nose-to-nose with the warty, drooling portrait of Mrs Black, slipped into the bed next to him sometime in the middle of the night.

"Ah!"

The startled shout was enough to wake the portrait, who screamed bloody murder that had Ron tumbling out of the other bed in the room, swearing as his backside hit the hard floor. "What the bloody effing hell is going on?"

The Marauders had put Silencing Wards all around the room, so the rest of the house slept on obliviously, unaware that the two youngest men of the house were dealing with a crisis that was likely to soon cause blood to dribble out of their ears.

"What do we do?" Ron hollered. "HELP! HELP!"

"I don't know!" Harry hollered back. "There's no curtains over it to close!"

Finally, the two boys figured out that if they flipped the portrait over so it was face down, Mrs Black would probably go back to sleep. When silence had finally been restored, Ron groaned and looked at the clock. It was five thirty in the morning, but both boys were now wide awake and Harry couldn't go back to bed anyway, as it was now occupied.

"Shall we wake Fred and George, see if they're up for a little early morning payback?" Ron suggested. Now that he had been vicariously pranked himself, he was eager to join the cycle of payback.

"Sure," Harry shrugged. "The other day Ginny told me the password to get into their room without having permanent ink dumped all over your head."

The three Weasley boys and Harry all looked slightly tired as they trooped in for breakfast the next morning, but for Harry and Ron the Marauders chalked it up to their unexpected sleepover guest. The twins had probably just been up late making explosives.

"Sleep well, Harry?" Dawn called from her seat next to Hermione.

"That was not funny!" Ron blurted.

"Really?" Sirius grinned, pulling a stack of glossy papers from his robes and throwing them on the table for everyone to see. "Because the Surveillance Charm pictures look an absolute riot."

There was a slight scuffle as everyone apart from the Marauders and Hermione dove to snatch up the pictures. Ron and Harry groaned, although everyone else seemed to find the funny side of it.

"You should see the ones I got enlarged to show at your wedding," Sirius continued, digging into scrambled eggs.

"Sirius, can I have some of these to put up at Hogwarts?" Ginny asked innocently.

"But I never did anything to you!" Harry burst out at his Godfather, when Sirius nodded at Ginny.

"Sorry, pup, but you mess with one Marauder…"

"Pup?" Harry mouthed uncertainly to himself.

"And you mess with us all," Remus finished from his seat on the other side of Hermione, raising his tea in a cheery toast.

It was then that the twins realised that the seating arrangements weren't what they usually were for breakfast. Usually the three Marauders sat together, normally Sirius occupied the seat that Hermione was in, but it looked as if the girl had been picking the adults' brains about Defensive Wards, judging from the book lying open in between them all. Fred and George shared a slight grimace. This was not going to go well.

The rest of the meal passed with no incident, apart from Sirius magically repairing the photographs as fast as Harry and Ron could tear them up, passing a few of the choicer ones to Ginny and promising to teach her the spell that would restore sound to the scene. Then everyone tried to stand up to leave, the table, and found that three of them couldn't. They were stuck to their chairs.

The twins, Harry and Ron cracked up with laughter. Dawn and Remus shared exasperated looks. Sirius pulled an apologetic face.

"Hermione, I'm so sorry. I had no idea they'd stuck something on the chair!"

"It's quite alright, Sirius. It's not your fault," Hermione said composedly, but there was a dangerous glint in her eyes that made Sirius grin. If he wasn't very much mistaken, they'd just gained an incredibly powerful ally.

"What have you boys done now?" Molly demanded sternly. "Tell me what you've put on the chairs so I can get them off!"

"Sure, we'll tell you," Fred grinned.

"Maybe sometime after lunch," George added cheekily. "RUN!"

The four boys fled the kitchen, Molly's shouts bouncing up the stairwell after them. When it was clear they weren't coming back, she sighed and turned to the three adults.

"Is all this really necessary? Really, if you keep going, somebody's going to blow the whole house up."

"It would be an improvement," Sirius shrugged, coming around the table to inspect Remus' seat to see if he could figure out what they'd used to bind them there.

"Nobody's going to blow the house up, Molly," Dawn promised. "And at least the kids aren't going stir crazy anymore, shut up in here all summer. It's harmless, really."

"And someone's got to give those… those… gits… a taste of their own medicine!" Hermione burst out suddenly, which earned her a round of applause from the Marauders.

Molly cracked. "Well, I suppose in the meantime they'll just have to pick up the slack around here while you can't help out. Why don't you stay here and see if you can't get these three loose, Sirius. The boys can clean their own filthy bathrooms today."

* * *

It had taken a lot of work – all of Hermione's and Remus' brains, and all of Dawn and Sirius' cunning, but by the time the boys had finished scrubbing out their bathrooms from top to bottom (the Muggle way for the twins as well, thanks to Molly's frustration), their great revenge had been set in motion.

Dawn casually suggested to Molly that when she call the boys down for lunch, it would be wise for her not to step over the threshold of either room, and if she did by accident, not to attempt to walk out but to Apparate directly to her and Arthur's bedroom. Molly didn't even bother asking why; she would find out soon enough.

Molly had been helping Ginny with the bathroom she and Hermione shared, since Hermione was supposedly still stuck to her chair in the kitchen, but in reality it hadn't taken them more than half an hour to figure out how to undo the twins' complex spell-work. So the trio plus their new recruit had tiptoed into the library to find the means to carry out Sirius' rather stellar suggestions, accompanied with Hermione's shrewd plans for closing all the loopholes.

Putting their plans into effect involved a lot of sneaking around the boys doorways without being noticed, and also effecting some incredibly tricky Apparation-restriction Wards, so Hermione had let the three adults take care of that without her. She wasn't quite as practiced at sneaking, and couldn't help with the spell-work anyway.

She was so impatient to see the results of her very first prank that she and Dawn even volunteered to help Molly make sandwiches so that lunch would be called that much quicker. Finally, Molly called upstairs for the boys to come down.

A moment later, the familiar cracking sound of Apparating echoed throughout the kitchen and Fred and George joined them… In their underwear. Hermione clapped a hand over her mouth and spun around so she wouldn't have to see any more of the twins than she needed to.

Molly dropped a tray of sandwiches on the table with a clatter. "Fred! George!"

The twins looked down, their eyes widened, and they immediately Disapparated back to their room. From upstairs, yells of horror echoed from Harry and Ron's room.

"I guess they just tried to cross the threshold," Dawn snickered.

"Bloody hell!"

"I guess Fred and George just did, too," Remus said conversationally, piling the sandwiches Molly had spilled back onto the tray while Hermione put the plates on the table, giggling.

"Boys, hurry up!" Molly yelled back upstairs. In truth, she was a little curious to see what the apparently legendary friends had come up with. And considering Hermione had clearly had an input, it was likely to be particularly ingenious, but not cruel.

A few minutes later, the four boys trudged downstairs to face the rest of the household. They all looked like they had been tarred and feathered… with fluoro pink feathers that clashed horribly with the Weasleys' red hair. Sirius snapped a picture.

Ron was gritting his teeth, but the others seemed more or less resigned to their fate.

"What I find interesting, though," Fred began in a would-be normal voice. "Is that to put those wards and spells up, you would've needed to enter our room at least once. And none of you appear to be covered in permanent ink. Which means…"

"Ginny!" George realised, his face aghast.

Ginny only smirked, looking extraordinarily like the brothers she had just double-crossed. "You won't be testing any of your products on me without asking first, anymore, will you?"

Dawn hooked an arm each around Ginny and Hermione's shoulders. "Lesson the first, boys; never cross a woman who's smarter than you are. And lesson the second; never, ever cross a redhead."

"Amen," Sirius and Remus muttered, memories of Lily flashing through their minds before they all burst out laughing.

Fred and George looked at each other, shrugged, and reached for the sandwiches.

**

* * *

**

**A.N:** Not much action here, I know. I promise the next chapter will be a little more canon, I'll FINALLY get to the ministry hearing!! Thanks for reading. Anoron XX00


	6. Walking In Slow Motion

**Disclaimer:** Own nothing (except my shiny wonderful man). The Buffy stuff still remains the property of Joss Whedon, the Harry Potterness remains the property of J.K. Rowling. The song excerpt is from "To Her Door" by Paul Kelly (good Aussie song, highly recommend, one of my faves…)

**A.N:** Hi! An update! One that even involved something close to what actually happened in the books! Still really appreciate all my wonderful readers & reviewers (I ADORE constructive criticism and suggestions, hint hint) and thank you very much to the lovely people who nominated me for the Crossing Over Awards. Voting for me would be neat, too. Lotsa love XX

Anoron

* * *

CHAPTER FIVE

**Walking in Slow Motion**

_He came in on a Sunday, every muscle aching,_

_walking in slow motion, like he'd just been hit._

_Did they have a future? Would he know his children?_

_Could he make a picture, and get them all to fit?_

Dawn woke up early on the morning of Harry's hearing, and from the moment her eyes sprang open she knew there would be absolutely zero chance of snoozing. So she tumbled out of bed, lit the lamps with a flick of her wand, and began to dress.

She half expected to be the first one up, but almost literally bumped into Sirius on the landing the moment she stepped out of her room. She couldn't help but feel his eyes on her as he followed her down the stairs and it made Dawn grin to herself a little bit. She didn't often get to dress in such feminine clothes, and she knew the little pinstripe suit with the pencil skirt worked well with her new boots, and that the loose bun complete with a few stray wisps of hair framing her face completed the look perfectly.

They reached Harry and Ron's hallway before Sirius finally cracked. He grabbed at Dawn's hand so she was forced to pull up short and swing around to face him.

"Yes, Sirius?" she grinned.

He just shook his head. She could see his Adam's apple heave when he swallowed.

"You look bloody fantastic like that."

She flushed prettily, eyes glittering in the semi-darkness. "Why thank you, Padfoot darling."

They grinned, and the moment carried them into a somewhat forceful kiss that made Dawn thankful she was such a minimalist when it came to makeup. Sirius' arms had wrapped about her waist, crushing their bodies together. It was several long seconds – or maybe minutes, or even hours – before Dawn finally summoned the will to push away. They were both panting a little.

"I have to wake Harry up," Dawn puffed.

"I'm already awake," a grouchy voice muttered, and when Dawn and Sirius whirled about (hastily putting some distance between each other in the process), Harry was easing the door to his room closed. Ron's snores were cut off abruptly.

Dawn smiled bracingly at him, noticing with a little thrill that he was wearing some of the clothes she'd bought for him, black slacks and a deep blue dress shirt. They seemed to fit, too.

"Morning, Harry."

He grunted. Sirius slapped him on the back, recognising his Godson's mood at once and deciding that silence might be the best way to make it through the morning without a major blow-up. Sharing a look with Dawn over the top of Harry's head, he could tell she'd picked up exactly the same vibe. Harry was clearly snappy when nervous. Like his father.

It was a lot easier to get through the hallway near the front door now, thanks to Dawn's efforts in removing the portrait of Mrs Black, but still, Sirius and Dawn were both surprised to hear Harry's voice just before they were about to descend the stairs into the kitchen.

"Can I ask something?"

He'd stopped dead in his tracks, they both turned to look at him. It was Sirius who answered, prodding him to go on.

"If this hearing goes badly… can I… Can I come back here and stay with you?"

There was a moment of silence. Sirius bit his lower lip and looked at Dawn. Dumbledore would likely not want Harry around Order Headquarters any longer than was strictly necessary. More importantly, what about the blood protection? Harry had no choice but to stay with the Dursleys for at least some of his time. Harry had asked him this when he had first arrived at Headquarters, but Sirius had managed to fob him off. He'd been hoping the boy wouldn't ask again.

"You're not going to lose, Harry," Sirius said evasively.

"But if I do?" Harry pressed. There was the faintest trace of desperation about him. What would the Dursleys do if he was just dumped back on their doorstep for good? "I'd really feel better knowing I didn't have to go back to the Dursleys."

Sirius looked to Dawn for help. He just didn't know how to put this delicately.

Dawn squeezed Harry's shoulder. "Look, kiddo, it's not all up to us. As far as the Ministry is concerned, the Dursleys are your legal guardians you're meant to live with them if you're not at Hogwarts. There's nothing we can do to change that."

Harry opened his mouth, eyes blazing, so Dawn quickly cut him off before he could launch into a tantrum – this was not the day for emotions to be running high.

"But we can promise you that we will do everything we possibly can to make sure that you aren't there for a second longer than you have to be, ok? You're wanted here, Harry, don't ever forget that. And we'll do everything in our power to have you with us."

Harry looked quickly at his shiny new shoes. Dawn must have spent a fortune on them. Before Sirius bought him his Firebolt, nobody had ever spent a fortune on him. He swallowed.

"Thanks," he whispered.

Sirius grinned at Dawn. She didn't know it herself yet, but she was working wonders with Harry. The sullen boy who'd shown up at Grimmauld Place only a couple of days before she had was slowly mellowing, slowly beginning to understand a little more about the way the world worked. Dawn noticed Harry still staring at his feet and winked at Sirius.

"Group hug!" she called, and she and Sirius converged on Harry from either side, enveloping him in a warm embrace before he knew what was happening.

They didn't let go even when they heard footsteps approaching.

"What's going on?" Remus asked, a slight grin on his face.

"Group hug," Sirius announced, both he and Dawn reaching out simultaneously to pull Remus into the mix.

Remus joined in happily – it had been far too long since his last group hug, the Marauders had had them all the time, even after their Hogwarts days were over. Harry seemed a little tense, sandwiched in the middle, but Remus noticed that one of his rather small hands had latched tightly onto Sirius' shirt at the shoulder.

"So why are we group hugging?" Remus finally asked.

"Because we love Harry," Dawn replied promptly, giving her Godson an extra squeeze as she spoke.

"Fair enough," Remus said, smiling a little as Harry couldn't quite hide the way his face lit up.

The group hug finally broke up and they all headed downstairs to breakfast, Dawn fussing over Harry's collar but not even wasting her energy on his hair. Potter hair was going to do what Potter hair was going to do, and no amount of mother-henning on her part was going to change that. Molly and Arthur were already in the kitchen to their surprise, Arthur dressed in what would've passed as a reasonably muggle pinstripe suit if it wasn't for the orange bomber jacket, Molly still in her purple dressing gown. Tonks was at the table as well, a few seats along from Molly, yawning every couple of seconds. Harry wondered if she'd been out all night, up to something for the Order.

Molly kicked into gear and made Harry some toast, but after two bites Harry looked like he was trying to swallow sandpaper. Dawn finished making her coffee and poured him some juice. He shot her a grateful look and took a sip.

"Better?" she murmured, taking a buttered muffin from the stack for herself.

Harry nodded.

"Good. Look at it this way – if you eat your breakfast, you'll have something in your stomach to hurl all over Fudge if we run into him!"

Mission accomplished: Harry laughed. He sobered up again when Arthur informed him that they would be taking the underground to the Ministry of Magic because arriving in non-magical means would make a good impression for his hearing. The last crust of toast dropped back to Harry's plate and he pushed it away.

Arthur went on to explain that Amelia Bones, Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, would be questioning him. Tonks stopped yawning long enough to promise that Bones was ok and he'd get a fair go with her. Sirius and Remus were also chipping in their two knuts' worth, Remus assuring him that the law was on his side and Sirius cautioning him against losing his temper.

Dawn's lips quirked a little. Harry was nodding along with whatever was being said to him, but he was getting a little paler with every word. Sitting around here listening to bracing words was not helping in the slightest. Nor was Molly desperately attacking his head with a wet comb; now his hair looked greasy as well as messy.

"Maybe we should get going," Dawn suggested lightly, and drained her coffee cup.

Arthur caught onto her vibe immediately and checked his watch. "You're right. We're a bit early, but I think you'll be better off at the Ministry than hanging around here, Harry."

"Ok," Harry said, moving as if he was on autopilot.

He barely noticed the last words of encouragement from the rest of the adults remaining behind, barely felt Molly hug him, or Sirius pat his back heartily, and it didn't register as Tonks offered to walk them out so she could Apparate home for some much-needed sleep. Sirius followed them to the front door so he could bolt it behind them. While Arthur was busy unbolting it, he pulled Dawn aside and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek.

"Be careful," he muttered.

"You know me," Dawn grinned.

"Exactly, that's why I'm worried. It's Tuesday, you know," Sirius quipped, and Tonks laughed as Dawn's hand shot out to whack him upside the head.

They stepped out into the cool, grey morning, Dawn managing to catch Sirius' eye one last time before the door swung closed between them. Tonks was still sniggering softly to herself as she and Dawn followed a few steps behind Harry and Arthur's brisk pace.

"Shut up," Dawn sniped at the younger witch, whose sniggers were becoming outright giggles. "What were you even doing at HQ this morning, anyway? Was there a specific reason you needed to make contact, or were you just hoping to run into someone? Now who could you have been so keen to bump into, hmm? And exactly how much, ah, bumping were you hoping to do?"

It was Dawn's turn to laugh as Tonks' giggles broke off abruptly, replaced by a magenta blush on her cheeks that stood out in stark relief against the blond curls bouncing on her head. She'd suspected there was something, or potentially could be something, between Tonks and Remus for a while, ever since Tonks had let slip how much she loved Remus' amber eyes when they were into their third bottle of wine on their ill-fated girls' night in.

"No!" she said, too quickly. "I just needed to find someone to take my next night duty so I can have a night off. Arthur's going to cover for me. Now I have to be going. Bye. Wotcher, Arthur. Good luck Harry," she said, before disappearing behind a nearby dumpster. A second later, they heard the telltale crack of Disapparating.

They had reached the dingy underground station by this time, and Dawn, still snickering to herself, came up to flank Harry. There were a lot more commuters in the station than there had been in the deserted square, all of a sudden Dawn's eyes were darting in every direction, trying to pick out potential Death Eaters or other threats. Arthur had become a little distracted by all the muggle things that suddenly engulfed him from all sides.

Dawn bought three tickets and they crammed into the next train, emerging at a stop in the very heart of London. Dawn and Harry shared a grin as they were swept along in the tides of suits all rushing out of the station and towards various buildings. They both blended in with the crowd perfectly, but Arthur's bight orange bomber jacket stood out like a Hippogriff amongst horses.

"At least we won't get separated," Dawn smiled.

After giving Arthur a moment to get his bearings (he'd never needed to use the visitors' entrance to the Ministry before, so it took him a few seconds to remember exactly which direction to head), they set off towards one of the dingier parts of town.

"_This_ is where the Ministry of Magic is?" Harry snorted to himself. Hobos would find this area of town too rundown.

"Impressive, huh?" Dawn laughed, still not looking at him, but incessantly surveying the scene for potential threats. She and Arthur herded Harry into a beat up old red telephone box and Dawn picked up the handset and dialled six, two, four, four, two.

A cool female voice filled the phone box. "Welcome to the Ministry of Magic, please state your name and business."

Arthur was uncertainly eyeing the receiver, so Dawn piped up as he was reaching to take the mouthpiece to lift to his ear.

"Arthur Weasley, Misuse of Muggle Artefacts Office. Harry Potter, disciplinary farce… I mean, hearing. Dawn Summers, guardian for Harry Potter."

Harry giggled slightly at Dawn's take on his 'hearing', the sound drowned out by the clinking of metal in the coin return slot, and the cool voice requesting the visitors to attach the badges to their robes and submit their wands for examination at the security desk. Then the floor grumbled and dropped out from under them. It was like they were falling slowly through the ground. When it finally stopped, they piled out of the phone box into an enormous, dark stone atrium. Witches and Wizards were rushing about everywhere.

Arthur ushered them to a sleepy looking guard who examined Dawn and Harry's wands, stared at Harry's scar for a minute, then finally let them on their way when Dawn got sick of waiting and snatched the wands from his hand. As they were passing through the Auror Department, Kingsley slipped something into Dawn's hands with a wink.

"Sirius should get a kick out of this," he muttered, and was on his way before anyone could even suspect they'd exchanged so much as a 'hello'. Dawn barely glanced down as she tucked her acquisition under the cloak slung casually over one arm. The offices were getting smaller and smaller as they moved along the hallway in Arthur's wake, and by the time they got to his Misuse of Muggle Artefacts Department, an office that was barely big enough for one person somehow had two desks and a row of filing cabinets crammed in.

Arthur picked up a file and started muttering about regurgitating toilets, but Dawn wasn't listening. She was glancing through the magazine Kingsley had slipped her, giggling quietly to herself. Sirius would definitely get a kick out of this.

"Ah, Harry, Dawn, this is Perkins," Arthur smiled as a tiny old white-haired wizard panted into the office, but he paid them no mind.

"Oh, Arthur," he dithered. "They've changed the hearing. It's at eight o'clock in old Courtroom Ten now!"

Dawn looked at her watch. Five past eight.

"Crap."

* * *

Arthur was not allowed into the courtroom, but as Harry's Godmother, Dawn refused to wait outside and passed straight into the room with Harry. They had taken only two steps from the door when Harry pulled up short and gasped. Dawn squeezed his hand and walked him forwards. There were torches placed throughout the dark dungeon courtroom, but the scores of figures in plum robes on the benches towering over Harry and Dawn were all shadowed.

"You're late."

Harry bit his lip. "Sorry. I – I didn't know the time had been changed."

The same male, cold voice replied. "That is not the Wizengamot's fault. An owl was sent to you this morning. Take your seat."

"If I'm not wrong, Justice Decree number twenty-seven A states that all parties involved in any courtroom proceedings must be given twenty-four hours notice of any proposed changes to schedule," Dawn said, her voice quiet and calm, but carrying.

In the meantime, Harry had crossed to the centre of the room and perched gingerly in the uncomfortable stone chair, praying silently that the chains on the arms didn't spring to life and bind him there.

"Why are you here?" the male voice snapped at Dawn, and now that he had moved forwards, Harry could see that it belonged to Cornelius Fudge, Minister for Magic.

Dawn smiled, but it was a horrible, cold smile that made her look harsh and unforgiving, like she was made of ice and steel. "I am here as Harry Potter's guardian."

"Harry Potter's Aunt and Uncle are his guardians."

"As his Godmother, I am authorised to act in that capacity."

"Very well," Fudge muttered gruffly. "Weasley, bring her a chair."

"Oh, I'm fine standing, thank you," Dawn said serenely, gliding over to position herself behind Harry's seat. She felt Harry relax a little now that she was close.

In as forbidding a voice as he could muster, Fudge began to read out the charges, but was soon interrupted by a quiet, raspy voice announcing Dumbledore's arrival as a witness for the defence. Harry's head turned to fast towards the sound of his headmaster's voice that he cricked his neck. Dawn squeezed his shoulder and tried not to smile too broadly at Dumbledore. She was, after all, still a bit mad at him for the way he was handling Harry. Even now he was staring up at the Wizengamot and had not even spared a fraction of a glance in Harry's direction even though he was standing right beside his chair.

"You got our message that the time and place had been changed, then?" Fudge said, with much stuttering and a red stain on his cheeks.

Dumbledore cheerily replied that he hadn't, luck had brought him to the Ministry three hours early, and conjured two incredibly comfortable-looking chairs. He insisted Dawn take the one with the fluffiest cushion. Dawn redoubled her efforts not to smile as she thanked him and graciously took the seat.

They waited quietly as Fudge and Madam Bones began their questions and Harry answered as well as he could. Yes, he was Harry James Potter, yes, he lived at number four, Privet Drive, yes, he produced the Patronus, and yes, it was a corporeal Patronus (once Madam Bones had explained to him what the term meant).

Dawn could see Harry getting more worked up; neither of the interrogators were giving him a chance to tell the full story, but before she could send him some silent warning to keep his cool, he spotted an opening and bellowed out that he'd only used magic to save himself and his cousin (fat and useless though he was) from two Dementors.

Predictably, Fudge tried to laugh the story off as the ravings of a pathological liar and attention seeker, but Dumbledore was ready and before anyone knew what was happening, he had Mrs Figg, Harry's batty old Squib neighbour who had witnessed the Dementor attack, in his comfy chair and testifying.

Dawn almost felt a little sorry for Harry; his mouth was opening and closing and she could practically see his mind spinning behind those expressive green eyes. It was funny, they might be Lily's eyes, but sometimes they reminded her so much of James that it broke her heart. Lily had this frightening ability to close off her mind to anyone in the blink of an eye, but James had never been that way. With one look, Dawn had always been able to read her brother's very soul, and she was discovering to read her Godson in just the same way.

It seemed over in a heartbeat; one moment Dumbledore was arguing with Fudge, trying to get him to wake up and smell the Voldemort-flavoured coffee, and the next, they Wizengamot were casting their votes. There were identically whooshes as both Harry and Dawn let out the breaths they hadn't realised they'd been holding. The vote had swung their way; Harry was cleared, he was going back to Hogwarts with his friends. Dawn watched as Harry turned to speak to Dumbledore, but the Professor still didn't look at him. He escorted Mrs Figg to the exit without looking back. Harry was frowning.

"C'mon, kiddo," Dawn muttered, leading him to the door before Fudge could speak again and she'd be forced to hit him. She didn't fancy a stint in Azkaban at the moment. Knowing her luck, she'd have to share a cell with Bellatrix Lestrange.

Arthur was waiting outside, his face split into a wide grin when Harry announced that he was cleared in a strangled voice, but the expression froze when the door banged open again and the entire Wizengamot filed out. Last, of course, was Percy Weasley, but father and son seemed to see nothing but a black hole where the other stood.

Once they were alone again in the dingy corridor outside Courtroom Ten, the eldest Weasley led them to the lift.

"I'll walk you out, I've got to go to Bethnal Green and see about this regurgitating toilet."

As the lift carried them swiftly upwards, Harry allowed himself a bit of a giggle over the idea of a regurgitating toilet. Even though he agreed with Arthur and Dawn that the recent spate of anti-muggle pranks was very disturbing, and showed signs of more a serious hatred, it was hard to be serious right at this moment. He was going back to Hogwarts, to his true home. He didn't feel so light-hearted a moment later when the doors of the lift sprang open and the trio inside found themselves face to face with two of their least favourite people in the world, Cornelius Fudge and Lucius Malfoy.

"How's that vomit coming, Harry?" Dawn muttered under her breath.

Harry would've snickered, but he was suddenly feeling winded. How could that man stand there and look him in the face, sneering, when only weeks before Harry had seen him dressed in all his Death Eater glory, jeering louder than anyone as Voldemort tortured him in that graveyard. Dawn was glaring harder than even Arthur could manage. When they'd been Aurors, the only person the Marauders had wanted to see behind bars more than Bellatrix Lestrange (besides Voldemort, obviously) was Lucius Malfoy. None of them had been able to forget the attack on Dawn when they were only fifteen.

"Well, well, well," Malfoy drawled. "Patronus Potter. The Minister here was just telling me of your, ah, _snakelike_ escape."

"There's a lot of that going around at the moment," Dawn returned quickly. She didn't want Harry's mouth to get him back into trouble the second he'd got himself out of it.

Harry himself was trying not to shiver. If Dawn's voice wasn't icy enough, the look in Malfoy's eyes as he looked her over was enough to drop the temperature in the corridor several degrees.

"And Dawn Summers. I must confess I am surprised to see you here. I thought you had run off to live amongst the Muggles years ago," the pale wizard sneered, his mouth curling cruelly.

Much to Harry and Arthur's shock, Dawn only smiled her brightest smile in return. "Call me a blast from the past, Lucius. There's a lot of that going around these days too, isn't there?"

"Miss Summers," Fudge broke in gruffly then. "You know Mr Malfoy, do you?"

"Oh, yes," Dawn chirped, still smiling as if she didn't have a care in the world. "Lucius and I go all the way back to Hogwarts days. Are you still a rapist, Lucius?"

The silence was explosive.

Fudge's jaw was hanging so low it may have actually been dislocated, and Malfoy's cheeks were growing steadily pinker. Arthur's expression had frozen, but a look of horror was dawning over Harry's face, which made Dawn send him a swift wink and hook her arm through his.

"Come on, Harry, I'll buy you a celebratory ice-cream."

She walked him forwards, but stopped for a moment in Malfoy's face, glaring into his maliciously glittering eyes. "Oh, and give Wormtail a kiss for me. Tell him I'm looking forward to catching up with old friends. He'll love that."

And she and Harry sailed on towards the Atrium, Arthur following in a slight daze, leaving two fuming wizards in their wake.

* * *

Harry licked at his ice-cream, staring out over the city. He'd mentioned he'd never been on the London Eye before, and before he knew it, he was in one of the capsules with Dawn, gazing out at what felt like infinity to him. His mind was churning – so much had happened that morning, it wasn't even lunchtime yet, and he felt like he had a million questions burning inside him.

Why was Dumbledore ignoring him? Why wouldn't Fudge believe him about Voldemort? What the hell was Lucius Malfoy doing at the Ministry today of all days? What had Dawn meant by all those things she'd said to him? Why had she called him a rapist, and what was all that stuff about Wormtail?

"Something on your mind, Harry?"

Dawn was chomping on her ice-cream cone, seemingly staring out at the city as he was, but somehow Harry could tell she was watching him. He shrugged. It wasn't so much something as and endless supply of things on his mind.

"Some morning we've had, huh?" she grinned when he still didn't say anything.

She waited another moment before trying again. "I know you've probably got a lot of questions about everything, and I want you to remember that it's ok to ask me about anything you want. If I can answer, I'll tell you the truth. If I can't answer, I'll tell you."

"Don't know where to start," Harry finally muttered.

"Start with whatever pops into your head first."

"Why did you say that stuff about Wormtail? You told Malfoy to give him a kiss."

Dawn sighed. "You don't like the easy questions, do you kiddo? When we were at Hogwarts, Peter kinda had a crush on me. It got pretty bad at one point, almost tore the boys up… We all learned to ignore it, I guess, and he was pretty good at acting like nothing was wrong… When Remus told me the truth about what had happened with the Fidelius Charm, I figured out why Peter would do it."

Harry frowned at Dawn over the top of his ice-cream. "What do you mean?"

"He might have been the weakest of us, but Peter would've died before he willingly gave up your Dad. James was his hero, Peter only ever did anything to keep James on his side, even if he was scared out of his wits."

Harry's ice-cream was starting to dribble over his fingers, but he didn't notice. He was staring at Dawn, slightly open-mouthed, waiting for her to finish, even though in the back of his mind he knew where she was heading.

"There was only one thing Voldemort could've offered Peter to make him turn his back on James. Me."

"Oh."

"Yeah."

"No wonder Sirius wanted to kill him."

Dawn laughed a little bit. She Vanished the forgotten remains of Harry's snack and cleaned his fingers with a wave of her wand.

"You and my Dad were pretty close, then? As close as he and Sirius?" Harry went on, fuelled by the promise of an honest answer.

"We were as close as any siblings you can imagine," she admitted, her eyes misting over. "I felt as connected to him as I did to my biological sister, Buffy. He meant the world to me."

Harry nodded – she'd mentioned the sister she'd been separated from a couple of times.

"But James and Sirius, they were a different type of close. Not more, or less, than I was with James, just different. Like Fred and George, even. Finished each others' sentences more often than not. Lily and I used to get whiplash looking back and forth between them!"

"Was my Mum your best friend?"

"No, she wasn't."

Dawn smiled – Harry looked so shocked, as if it would've been a given.

"Remus has always been my best friend in the world. When I arrived at Hogwarts in fifth year, Lily's best friend was a girl named Isabel. She was a really cool girl, but she died that year."

"Voldemort?" Harry asked in a hushed voice.

"Suicide," Dawn whispered. "It's probably not a good idea to bring any of this up in front of Remus, ok Harry? Isabel was his girlfriend, and something like that never really leaves you."

Harry was suddenly wishing Dawn had lied to him. He was quiet, not even pretending to look at the view anymore and when their ride came to an end, he left the Eye still without a word. She let him wander in silence for a few minutes, scanning to crowds still for threats to his safety but spotting none.

They were wandering along the riverbank for a fair while before he spoke.

"The truth sucks, doesn't it?"

"Yep. And the real bitch of it is that once you know, there's no taking it back. I guess the trick is making damn sure you want to know the answer before you ask the question."

Harry mulled it over.

"Why did you leave me at the Dursleys?"

She stopped in her tracks, staring with enormous eyes like a deer caught in the headlights.

"I know you couldn't get custody of me," he rushed on. "But why didn't you visit?"

Her eyes were watering, but she was fighting hard against it. "Because I was only making it harder on you."

"How could having my Godmother have made anything harder on me?" Harry snapped.

"Your Aunt and Uncle thought they could make you normal if they really tried," Dawn mumbled, not able to look him in the face. "Part of that was cutting everything at all magical out of your life – erasing your parents, heritage, everything about your life. Having some Yank Witch bursting through their front door every other minute sorta got in the way of that."

"What happened?" Harry asked. His voice was softer now.

"I knew they were mistreating you. You weren't getting proper clothes, Petunia wasn't bothering to change your diapers, would only let you have one a day not matter how bad it got, fed you about a quarter as much as they fed the beach ball. I mean, Dudley…"

She shrugged. "Nobody would help me, or if they were willing, there was nothing they could do. A lot of people in those first few months didn't even want me anywhere near you – there were a lot of people still saying if Sirius was guilty, I had to be, too. I think some idiots like Fudge still kinda think that way. But I kept going back for you. Nothing could stop me – every second I had I was at the Dursley's, taking care of you."

"What changed."

"I realised what they were doing. Every time I saw you, they had to work twice as hard to squash the magic out of you. For every one thing I gave you, they took two away. In the end the only way to give you even the slightest chance was to leave you at their mercy until you were old enough for Dumbledore to step in. You had just turned two when I realised I couldn't see you anymore."

Dawn had lost her battle, she was crying silently now. She was still not looking at him, looking out at the murky water, with little droplets sliding quietly down her cheeks. Harry bit his lip. He should be mad, should be shouting at her and possibly even trying to drown her in the Thames. Instead he reached for her hand and she shuddered a little before reigning in her emotions.

"I kept an eye on you, though," she said, meeting his troubled gaze at last. "Every now and then I would look in on you, make sure things weren't too bad. Remember that horrible orange pompom sweater that shrunk so much you couldn't wear it? I s'pose you've always thought that was accidental magic, but that was really me… And I suggested to Dumbledore that he should get Hagrid to deliver your Hogwarts letter, you know."

Harry smiled and wiped at his eyes beneath his glasses with his free hand.

"Come on," Dawn said, squeezing the hand he'd left in hers. "The others are probably going nuts waiting for news. We'd better get home and put them out of their misery."

"So," Harry grinned as they began to walk to the nearest Underground Station. "What's going on with you and Sirius? Are you back together?"

"Yes. No. I don't know," Dawn sighed. "It's complicated."

"Do you still love each other?"

She didn't need to think about that one. "Yes, we do. We'll always love each other, that's not even a question. But one of those sucky parts about being an adult is that love doesn't automatically solve all your problems, Harry. There's a lot to be worked out there, you know."

Harry just looked at her like she was an idiot. One who liked to unnecessarily complicate things. "Well I think you should just go for it."

* * *

The whole household was crowded into the kitchen when they returned; like they couldn't wait an extra second to hear the verdict of Harry's hearing. Hermione was slightly shaking in her seat with anxiety, when Harry announced he was going back to Hogwarts she almost fainted with relief.

Sirius cheered with the rest and gave his godson a one-armed hug before sending him off to celebrate with his friends. It didn't escape his notice that Harry's eyes were ever-so-slightly red-rimmed, however, and when he turned to face Dawn, she seemed to have developed the same mysterious affliction.

"Everything alright?" he murmured underneath the war-cry the twins and Ginny had started up in celebration of Harry's beating the system.

"HE GOT OFF! HE GOT OFF! HE GOT OFF!"

Dawn managed a tiny smile and nodded her head in Harry's direction. "Yeah. I think we understand each other a little better now, you know?"

"Good."

"Oh, and here," she pulled the magazine from Kingsley from under her cloak and pushed it into his chest. "Something to confess, lover?"

"HE GOT OFF! HE GOT OFF! HE GOT OFF!"

"What?"

"You'll understand later. You won't be able to miss it."

"Ok then…"

"HE GOT OFF! HE GOT – "

"Shut up!" Molly roared at her three loudest, and moments later a semi-orderly lunch had got underway and the magazine was stuffed into Sirius' robes pocket.

Sirius sat in his usual place between Dawn and Remus, Remus was chatting with Molly about healing spells and Sirius had to admit he wasn't interested in the least. They'd covered all those in Auror training. Dawn wasn't talking at all, just turning her food into mush with her fork and smearing it all over her plate. He could tell there was something on her mind, but she wasn't ready to talk about it yet.

He himself was finding an unexpected emotion rearing up inside him – disappointment. A tiny part of him had decided that he wouldn't be too horrified if Harry was expelled from Hogwarts, even though Hogwarts was the best place for him at the moment. He knew it was selfish, wrong, childish and probably even a little insane, but he couldn't stop that miniscule voice in the back of his mind that kept telling him that if Harry was expelled, he would have a family. That everything would suddenly become perfect; he, Dawn and Harry would make their own little world within the confines of Grimmauld Place. It would be quiet, but safe, and complete.

He shook his head to rid himself of the thoughts and looked down the table to where Harry sat, grinning, in between his two best friends. What sort of guardian would he be if he could take that away from Harry? What was wrong with him?

The afternoon and evening passed peacefully enough, but Sirius could detect a sort of muted vibe in the air. After dinner, Harry gave the household a rundown of the morning, and his hearing, and while the kids seemed enthralled by his spirited retelling, it seemed just a little flat to Sirius. And it ended rather abruptly; Harry clammed up about what had happened after he was cleared, saying only that they had run into Fudge and Lucius Malfoy on their way out, then Dawn had taken him for ice-cream and brought him home.

The youngsters seemed to accept that readily enough – the hearing itself seemed to provide all the excitement they needed, but Sirius and Remus immediately turned to Dawn, who obliged by muttering the details of the exchange that had taken place between her and Malfoy. She too, however, was less than willing to discuss what had taken place between her and Harry afterwards.

"We talked," she shrugged, then changed the subject by suggesting Dumbledore should be told that Malfoy was still frequenting the Ministry next time he made contact.

It was late that evening before Sirius even remembered the magazine Dawn had given him. The house had all retired for the night, and he was just pulling his robes off when he felt the weight in his pocket. When he had shed down to his boxers, he fished the magazine out of his robes and settled back against his pillows to flick through.

It didn't take him long to find what Dawn was talking about. _The Quibbler_ had never exactly been the pinnacle of credibility, but this was wild even for them. They had published an article containing the testimony of some psychotic hag (because no sane person would suggest he would cheat on Dawn, let alone cheat on her for someone who looked like Slimer from Ghostbusters), who swore that Sirius was really a singer called Stubby Boardman, who'd been on a romantic date with her at the time of James and Lily's murder and all that had followed. Sirius didn't know whether to laugh or to write an angry letter to Xenophilius Lovegood, the editor, threatening to sue for defamation. The only singing he'd ever done in public was either a dare or a karaoke night.

His door opened and closed; when he looked up Dawn was standing a few steps inside his room in her boxers and t-shirt, looking at him with those luminous blue eyes.

"Hi."

"Hi."

"Um, is everything alright?"

"I'm not sure. I hope so."

He smiled at that, appreciating the honesty. Dawn had drifted a few steps closer now, she was almost to the foot of his bed and chewing her lip. He patted the mattress.

"Do you want to sit down?"

"Ok."

She closed the distance between them, perching awkwardly on the edge of his bed. Her eyes flicked over his bare chest and she looked away, trying not to smile. He was thinner now, paler, still slightly sunken and she didn't think he'd ever get rid of that sort of wasted air, but damn he was still so beautiful.

Without thinking, she reached out to touch him, tracing her fingers from his cheek, down his neck and then to his chest, feeling the last reserves of muscle that had desperately clung to his bones. Her hand brushed over his stomach (flatter than hers now, dammit) and he shivered and caught her hand in his. The movement startled her back into the present, her eyes flew up to lock with his and she felt the heat creeping up her neck at the look in his eyes.

"Dawn, what are you doing?"

She smiled sheepishly. "Taking the advice of an artless fifteen year old boy."

He didn't have a chance to question her answer because as soon as the words were out, she was moving forwards and somehow he was too, their lips fusing together somewhere in the middle. Sirius stopped thinking, he was feeling his way now as he grabbed Dawn and rolled her over until somehow she ended up laying on his bed beneath him, her hands tangling in his hair and his running up and down her sides.

It was several long, steamy minutes before Sirius pulled back to stare down into Dawn's face while they both regained their breath. The colour was high in her cheeks and her eyes had come to life with a galaxy of sparkles.

"Are you sure?" he panted.

"Aren't you?" she panted back.

He answered in the form of another kiss, slower and deeper and somehow more thrilling than the last and Dawn couldn't quite bite back the moan that escaped from her lips as his hands found their way underneath her shirt, sliding it up over her head. Sirius didn't stop to listen to the whispering of the fabric as it swished to the floor, he was too wrapped up in the body beneath him, kissing his way down her chest and to the waistband of her Gryffindor boxers (was fate trying to tell him something – her boxers perfectly matched his). He hooked one finger underneath the waistband and wordlessly Dawn obliged, raising her hips a little so he could peel them off.

As soon as her boxers were gone, Sirius leaned eagerly in for another kiss, revelling in the feeling of more of their bare skin moulded together as Dawn tugged his own boxers down over his hips, then used her feet to push them down his legs and kick them off over his feet.

All of a sudden both Sirius and Dawn seemed to realise that they were in a position they hadn't been in for years, naked together, and about to make love. There was a bit of nervous giggling, and some trembling, and when Dawn, laughing and blushing, muttered that she felt like she was fifteen all over again, Sirius kissed her cheek and nuzzled her nose affectionately. He knew exactly what she meant, because he was feeling it too. He remembered what their first time had been like, how she had looked up at him with those indescribable eyes, nervous but trusting, and how he'd never been more nervous himself, anxious he would hurt her and desperate to satisfy her, to show her how he really felt about her and how amazing it could be.

Then the vibe changed again, there was an inexplicable spark between them and it was almost like their bodies were acting on memories of their own accord. The almost forgotten sensations threatened to overwhelm them as they came together at last; Dawn gasped out loud and Sirius couldn't stop trembling no matter how hard he tried. The initial shock subsided quickly, though, the trembles between them giving way to waves of pleasure and raw emotion.

Sirius found himself completely captivated by Dawn's eyes. He didn't even try to control the way his body was moving against hers, their bodies seemed to be doing perfectly well on their own, but there was a whole world to be found in Dawn's eyes and Sirius didn't want to blink lest he miss a second of it. In the back of his mind, he knew what it meant when she started to make strange sounds somewhere in between a whimper and a full-blown moan, and it took a minute to register that half the moaning going on was actually coming from his mouth, and the next thing he knew they were lying side by side, panting uncontrollably and staring at each other in pure amazement.

"Oh God," Dawn breathed.

"Uh-huh," Sirius grunted. He didn't know if sex had gotten a million times better with their age, or if the lonely Azkaban nights had made him forget how good it always was, but at the moment he didn't really care.

"We should sue the Ministry for making us miss out on that for so damn long," Dawn murmured, brushing her hand lazily through his hair.

"I don't think anything could compensate for a minute lost with you, let alone a decade," he said, rolling on his side to face her properly.

"I know what you mean," Dawn started, but fell silent as Sirius began reacquainting himself with her body in detail, exploring it with his hands and eyes.

She blushed a little, looking away for a moment. She couldn't help but feel a touch self-conscious. Sirius was the only man who'd ever seen her naked, but the last time he'd seen her in such a state she'd been only twenty-two, young, firm and whole. Now she was less so – she'd aged, she'd gained a size or two, and there were more scars spoiling her skin, most of them much bigger and uglier than the almost-invisible lines from the "Hell-God Incident". Sirius noticed her look and reached for her chin, gently moving it so she had to look at him.

He smiled. "You have just got lovelier and lovelier, haven't you?"

"You can drop the flattery now, Black. I'm already in bed with you," she chuckled, but the colour in her cheeks morphed into something of a pleased glow.

On instinct they leaned in for a kiss, then snuggled in under the covers together, feeling complete and hopeful for the first time in far too long. Sleep claimed Sirius much more easily than usual that night, and for the first time since returning to his hated parents' old house, the nightmares stayed away.

**

* * *

****A.N:** A little on the short side, but I'm going to be really lazy and leave it there, so at least I get to have an update and if I'm really lucky get some shiny reviews for Christmas! Sorta get the feeling like I'm rushing the Dawn/Sirius thing, but I really want to get things where they should be before Harry goes back to Hogwarts. Which should be in the next chapter or two. Happy holiday season, wonderful people! XX 


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